Parenting Styles In 'Morticia And The Psychiatrist'

The specific parenting styles used are permissive parenting in The Addams Family and authoritative parenting in Black-ish. Permissive parenting refers to the way in which “parents are usually warm and responsive but undemanding. They place few requirements on their children for orderly behavior or household tasks” (Benokraitis, 2014). The Addams parents rarely pressure their children into behaving a certain way, with the exception of Pugsley in “Morticia and the Psychiatrist,” and don’t rely on restrictions in order to discipline their children. The Johnsons, on the other hand, are more authoritative, in which they strike a balance between being demanding and being supportive (Benokraitis, 2014). While house rules and regulations are important to the Johnsons, they strive to explain mistakes in a calm, casual manner, rather than jumping directly to harsh punishment.

With the exception of Morticia’s bouts of jealousy, there is no specific mention of divorce in Black-ish. Similarly, the only mention of abuse is when Dre is discussing the necessity of spanking in “Crime and Punishment.” In the end, he elects to sit down with Jack and explain why his disobedience is wrong. This reflects current realities in the United States as, according to a survey conducted by the Pew Research Cetner, only 4% of people would choose to punish their children through spanking. The majority of people, at 75%, would choose to explain to their children why their behavior was wrong (“Few Parents Say They…”), which is exactly what Dre did, and it turned out to be immensely effective. This also reflects the realities of the time the program aired, because the survey was conducted from September 15 to October 13 of 2015, and Black-ish had already started airing when the data collection period