Helicopter Parenting, Intrusive Behavior Can Harm Children: Study
Intrusive Parenting may Push Children to Future Anxiety, Depression
Helicopter parenting can produce children with anxiety and depression. Pushing children to excel in many things to the point of perfectionism will end up making them too self-critical and may develop mental health conditions.
Pitfalls of Helicopter Parenting
Helicopter parenting is an intrusive type of parental behaviors that can affect children in a mentally-negative way. According to the study published in the Journal of Personality, researchers from the National University of Singapore found that children who come from this type of parenting often end up becoming too self-critical which can be debilitating in terms of self-growth. Their parents' high expectations can lead them to not being risktakers for the fear of committing mistakes. They also fear asking for help when they need it which could reinforce the development of mental health conditions like anxiety and depression.
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Helicopter Parents Overreact at their Child's Failures
The researchers led by Ryan Hong did a five-year study on primary school students from Singapore. Children that were placed with high expectations often had helicopter parents. Furthermore, these parents overreacted negatively when their child made mistakes.
Hong explained that helicopter parenting behavior is also known as maladaptive perfectionism. This kind of behavior leads to children blaming themselves if they did not acquire a perfect score or made a tiny mistake. As a result, children have a higher risk of developing anxiety and depression with some prone to suicide. Singapore's educational environment is highly competitive, so parents put unusually high expectations for their children. However, the study did not find that helicopter parenting directly causes child anxiety or depression.
Anxiety and Depression in Children Can Be Diminished
Instead of placing too much importance on academic excellence, Hong recommends that parents allow their children to make mistakes. He explains that a conducive learning environment involves children being allowed to explore and make mistakes.
Parents should also take a conscious effort to be more mindful of their child's feelings especially when they committed mistakes or did not do so well in an exam. Hong said that parents should praise their children and gently remind them of their mistakes so they can learn and do better next time.
