Side Effects of Authoritarian Parenting Styles

Sociology and Psychology

Photograph: John Lau

According to Baumrind parenting styles, there are four main methods of parenting: authoritarian, authoritative, permissive and uninvolved. The authoritarian parenting style is the strictest and most rigid parenting style. Baumrind suggests that authoritarian parents are low in responsiveness and high in behavioural control and demand. Parents who fall within this category expect their children to follow rules and instructions with no discussions or the option to compromise.

The authoritarian parenting style includes straightforward rules with no leeway, demands that are incredibly difficult to achieve such as “you have to be back before 6pm” or “I want at least a 90% on your upcoming math test”. However, when the child makes mistakes, explanations or lessons are rarely given; instead, punishments are usually enforced to resolve the issue. Although some punishments are appropriate in certain circumstances, some parents take it to the extreme, using methods such as extended isolation, violence, or aggression. Lessons and reflections after mistakes are helpful for a child as it allows them to reflect and learn from their mistakes. Yet, without any explanation from parents, they may never understand and learn from the punishment and will instead try to behave in ways that allow them to avoid getting caught. Such strict and frightening parenting styles will undoubtedly instil fear in their children, and has shown to have negative side effects in adulthood as the child grows up.

As stated by Hamid Masud, “authoritarian and permissive parenting styles result in aggressive and negative behaviors in children”. Aggression can develop in children because oftentimes, aggression is a way parents use to resolve their issues and punish them, leading them to believe that aggression is a correct and effective method for resolving disputes. In other words, children learn directly from their parents even if they do not necessarily know if it is wrong.

Additionally, Monica Konnie Mensah and Alfred Kuranchie found that due to the authoritarian parenting style being “based on strict rules, force, threat, verbal and physical punishments”, it increases the chances of a child developing “anti-social behaviour”. This occurs because of a lack of communication with their family members. With authoritarian parents, discussions are rare while verbal threats and punishments are common. This means that these children will be less exposed to conversing with others on a personal and intellectual level. Additionally, being rarely exposed to conversation can cause children to become socially inept and fearful of others - mainly due to self-doubt and the fear of being misunderstood or judged. This fear can proliferate anxiety levels when they are around others or meeting new people, ultimately increasing their chances of having low self-esteem or mental health issues such as depression or other antisocial personality disorders.

Finally, Priyansha Singh Jadon and Dr. Shraddha Tripathi found that the authoritarian parenting style “destroys children’s self confidence and increases their insecurity and inferiority”. This is because during verbal encounters, parents usually shame them, threatening them with even harsher punishments and taking advantage of their insecurities. Hence, the child becomes defensive and intimidated. Moreover, the child could also have trouble learning independently because, from a young age, they were rarely given any options or choices since they were all made by their parents, leading to showings of stubbornness or indecisiveness in adulthood.

Interestingly, culture has a large part to do with authoritarian parenting. A well-known phrase “tiger mom” typically refers to a Chinese household and their parenting styles. Asian cultures highly value education and academic excellence and thus, many parents use an authoritarian parenting style to pressurise their children. However, Chamberlain’s research concluded that “tiger parenting” is not the formula for high-achieving child prodigies”, demonstrating how an authoritarian parenting style would be detrimental to a child’s development.