Respectful Parenting: What It Is and Its Benefits
Motherhood is a constant challenge, and the goal is to help your baby grow into a functional, responsible, and above all, happy adult. This is no easy task. There are various parenting styles, and it is up to parents to decide which style to adopt.
The style that has been most promoted recently and shows the best long-term results is respectful parenting. To understand exactly what this style entails and the benefits it brings to your child, yourself, and your relationship, keep reading. We will provide you with all the key insights into respectful parenting.
What Is Respectful Parenting?
Respectful parenting is a style of raising children that is based on respect and equality between parents and children. This style has its origins in the Attachment Theory of psychoanalyst John Bowlby.
Common sense might lead us to believe that parenting is always based on respect and love. It's logical, right? After all, we love our babies dearly and want to give them the best.
However, traditional ways of educating young children and many of our social customs do not align with this idea of raising children from a place of equality.
Respectful parenting establishes a series of guidelines, advice, and guides for parents to learn how to respond appropriately to their babies' various actions at each stage of their development.
What Are the Principles of Respectful Parenting?
As mentioned above, respectful parenting involves raising your baby with understanding, empathy, and love, but as equals. It is not about giving them everything they want whenever they want it, but about understanding their emotional and affective needs and responding to them in the most appropriate way. It is closely related to positive discipline.
- Respect: As its name suggests, respectful parenting is based on mutual respect between parents and children. This is complex, as children must learn and understand that parents are authority figures, but parents must recognize that the baby is a complex human being with particular needs. This is more challenging than it might seem.
- Unconditional Love: Loving your little one without conditions, despite their flaws, mistakes, or personality, is the foundation of any healthy parent-child relationship. During pregnancy, dreams and hopes begin, but burdening your baby with your expectations is unfair and a source of many frustrations when they inevitably do not meet all of them.
- Equality: As adults, it is natural to think we know what is best for our children. Often, this is true. However, parents must understand that children have opinions, feelings, and ideas just like adults, and these should be respected. Respectful parenting teaches us not to silence our children, as they need to learn to express their thoughts and feelings without fear.
- Empathy: Finally, but no less importantly, it is crucial in respectful parenting to connect with your baby, put yourself in their shoes, and try to understand why they are acting in a certain way. This is essential for creating the necessary bond of respect.
What Are the Benefits of Respectful Parenting?
Respectful parenting is currently the most recommended parenting style by experts. This is because it is the most effective way to raise a child. Following the principles and key points of respectful parenting will provide your child with the cognitive and emotional tools they need to navigate the world with confidence and security, without neglecting empathy and understanding.
- Better Emotional Management: Children raised with this style demonstrate greater emotional intelligence. They can recognize their feelings, identify the cause, and manage their emotional reactions in the best possible way.
- Fewer Self-Esteem Issues: With respectful parenting, children internalize that their opinions have value, even if they do not always get their way, and that their feelings are acknowledged. Therefore, they are more confident and possess greater autonomy.