There are about as many parenting styles as there are parents of teenagers. Some experts have distilled the different parenting styles into four parenting concepts; namely indulgent, authoritarian, authoritative, and uninvolved. But don’t look at this as parenting advice set in stone. Most parents fall somewhere in between or a combination of two or three types.
Parenting Style #1 Indulgent
The first of the parenting styles for parents of teenagers is the indulgent parent. Parents who are indulgent are generally lenient. They allow a host of behaviors by their teens, including immature behavior. Essentially, they let their teenagers parent themselves and don’t wish to confront them.
Indulgent parents can also be further categorized as democratic and non-directive. Non-directive parents take practically no action to parent their adolescents. Whereas democratic parents are lenient but aware, committed, and engaged with their teens.
A Good Point to Remember about Discipline and Teens
In disciplining your teen, it is important to follow through with your threats. For instance, if you take away television from your teen as a punishment, be sure to follow through with enforcing this. Otherwise, they will see your threats as idle, and having no meaning and you will lose any control over them.
Parenting Style #2 Authoritarian Parent
The second of the general parenting styles is the authoritarian parent. Parents who are authoritarian are like drill sergeants. They issue commands to their teens and expect their orders to be followed without question. Authoritarians don’t respond to feedback from their kids. They often have structured and orderly environments with defined rules.
Adolescents of authoritarian parents are generally anxious and tend to have an unhappy disposition. When faced with frustration, boys might exhibit hostile behavior while girls might simply throw in the towel. However, because of the strictness of the environment, kids tend to do well in school.
A Good Point About Communication with Teens
Raising teenagers can be a challenging task, but there are some approaches that may help. For example, instead of lecturing them you should try to discuss issues with them. Make the teenager feel free to speak, provide an open forum to exchange ideas. You will find this positive approach to parenting will work wonders with your teen.
Parenting Style #3 Authoritative Parent
The third of the parenting styles we are discussing is the authoritative parent. These parents have qualities of being both responsive and demanding. Authoritative parents expect their children to behave in a certain fashion. At the same time, they don’t impose their unquestioned authority. Rather, they assert themselves to their teenagers but are responsive to their kid’s feedback.
Adolescents of authoritative parents are generally lively with a happy disposition. They have developed high self-confidence in their own abilities. Their emotional regulation is also well-developed, as are their social skills. Authoritative parents are also not as concerned with gender stereotypes and are open-minded to other possibilities, such as boys cooking and girls playing sports.
When It Comes to Parenting Keep This in Mind
The internet can have a big influence on teenagers today, videos on you tube and other social media. It is important to regulate what your teen has access to, to ensure they are getting influenced by appropriate information. You should move the computer into a family area for more control, you will see a positive difference in your teen.
Parenting Style #4 Uninvolved Parenting
Finally, we have uninvolved parents. Like the label implies, uninvolved parents are not demanding of their teens, nor do they respond to their kid’s feedback. In the extreme, uninvolved parents are neglectful of their teenagers. And they often reject them.