Positive Parenting

Positive Parenting: Harsh parents halt kids' school success

Every parent wants their child to succeed in school. But new research finds that how you parent may affect your kid's chances of getting here. 

Investigators followed more than 1,000 seventh grade students for nine years. They found the kids who were parented harshly, meaning their parents yelled, hit, or threatened them, were more likely to engage in risky behaviors in eleventh grade. 

These behaviors included early sexual behavior in girls and stealing and hitting in boys. The students who had harsh parents were also more likely to drop out of high school or college later on. 

Researchers say their findings could lead to intervention programs to target children who are subjected to harsh parenting with the goal of boosting graduation rates and reducing risky behaviors; and it could offer all students a better chance for success.

The seventh graders who reported being parented harshly were also more likely to say their peer group was more important than other responsibilities, including following parents' rules, in ninth grade. 


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