This paper focuses on the authoritarian and authoritative parenting styles, and discusses the differences and implications on children’s later adjustment. In the later section of the paper, it will be explained if the implications can be generalised to Singaporean families. I first interviewed a mother who described a situation when she discovered that her daughter, who was then nine years old, had stolen money from her. She was enraged and scolded her daughter for doing so, and proceeded to ask her daughter for an explanation regarding her behaviour, using physical punishment to force the answer out when she refused to answer. Subsequently, this mother gave her daughter a second chance and warned her that she would be punished more severely and brought to the police station if she ever stole again. According to this mother, she felt obliged to teach her child moral values. The method she undertook was the only way she knew how to discipline her daughter. I am of the opinion that the authoritarian parenting …show more content…
These children score higher on a variety of measures of competence, social development, self-perceptions, and mental health compared to those in authoritarian, permissive, or neglectful homes (Klein & Ballentine, 2001). Authoritative parenting has been found to have a significant impact on adolescent school performance and engagement in high school (Steinberg, Lamborn, Dornbusch, & Darling, 1992). In addition, the authoritative parenting style also positively predicted emotion regulation among adolescents (Jabeen, Anis-ul-Haque, & Riaz, 2013). With warmth and responsiveness a feature of the authoritative parenting style, children are provided with a sense of security, and the experience of negative affect becomes less threatening to them (Davies & Cummings,