Child rearing plays a significant role in the all-round development of children. Studies indicate that the development of the 'whole' child- - -physical, mental and emotional, is generally influenced by a wide range of factors. However, most of these influences revolve around parent's personalities, lifestyle, attitudes and values. A balanced combination of these could have a direct bearing on the child's adult years.
Experts in the field strongly suggest that all well-meaning parents focus on all of the multiple factors that influence child rearing. Factors like race, religion, culture, genetics, education, environment, economic status and patterns of socialization, can all influence the process of child rearing and have a deep-rooted lifetime impact on children's lives.
To better understand the full impact of factors that influence child rearing, the writer encourages you to read on:
- Family has the most powerful influence on child rearing. The values ingrained, the habits formed and the quality of communication between family members can play a critical role in the early formative years of child development. Indeed, family upbringing could have a lifelong impact on an individual. A lot also depends on how the parents themselves were raised. Parents, who are the product of broken or abusive homes, may not be in a position to make a positive contribution to the entire child rearing process. In such a scenario, parents could have negative influence wherein children could suffer from neglect, abuse or plain indifference.
- Social factors do play a prominent role in influencing the child rearing process. Communities, religious and social groups, social norms of behavior and etiquette influence parenting styles and motivate parents to interact with children in different ways. The social status of parents can also influence their child rearing style. Parental aspirations for children may largely be dependent on the families they periodically socialize with. For example, children from families who own fancy cars and latest tech gadgets expect many more good things from life than their less affluent counterparts.
- Economic background does have a large influence on child-rearing. It has been found that the quality of child rearing could be negatively affected where parents have to struggle to make ends meet. Although most parents may be able to provide the basic needs to their children, providing quality health care, better schools and homes and other upscale amenities, are all possible by those parents who have a high spending power. It is these parents who tend to offer their children quality extracurricular activities like taking expensive music lessons, art classes or special coaching classes in sports.
- Educational background of parents also influences the direction which child rearing takes. Highly educated parents tend to focus more on providing the best possible education to their children than parents who are uneducated. Educated parents understand the importance of education and spare no expense in enrolling their children into prestigious schools and colleges. They also take time to actively monitor and guide their children in the pursuit of their academic goals.
- Conclusion
Although all the above enumerated factors influence the child rearing practices, psychologists strongly believe that every parent can yield the most profound influence on their children's lives. It is they, who have the unique privilege and responsibility of raising children to become successful adults. It is their vision, interest and time, their determination and their loving guidance that can make it possible for parents despite their circumstances, to raise responsible, productive and well-adjusted children.
