Simple Parenting Techniques That Work

Child Development

• One of the more important aspects of developing parenting techniques is the developmental level of the child. Parents should study child development, Christy Matta, M.A., and author of ̶0;The Stress Response,̶1; writes in an article for the PsychCentral website. A parent who understands that 2-year-olds normally have temper tantrums will not use harsh discipline when the child throws herself on the floor in a screaming fit. Parents who know that the peer group is vitally important to a teenager might be more willing to go along with some of the things their teen daughter wants ̶0;Because everybody̵7;s wearing it!̶1;

Managing Behavior

• Managing behavior usually involves a mix of both appreciation and discipline -- appreciation and praise for the behavior you want to encourage and discipline for the behavior you consider inappropriate or harmful. Matta recommends using labeled praise -- feedback that specifically describes what the child did that the parent appreciated. She suggests brief timeouts for younger children. She also notes that parents should think ahead to prevent misbehavior that might occur when a child is tired or hungry, by using strategies such as ensuring naps as part of the daily routine and keeping healthy snacks handy.

Parental Habits

• Parents who develop certain habits are more likely to be effective, according to an article on the Education.com website. The first of these habits is consistency. Parents must set boundaries for their children -- if the boundary is constantly moving because the parent keeps changing her mind, the child doesn̵7;t know what the limits are. Two corollaries of consistency are to follow through and to be specific. If you̵7;ve said there will be consequences for misbehavior, you should follow through with those consequences. When you are specific and clear in your expectations, children know what is expected of them.

Authoritative Parenting

• One way to be an effective parent is to use the authoritative parenting style. Anthropologist Gwen Dewar, who studies and writes about the science of being a parent, reports that authoritative parents encourage children to be responsible and think for themselves. Parents do this by setting definite limits and having high standards, but also by being warm and affectionate with their children. Authoritative parents encourage their children̵7;s autonomy by allowing them to learn from their mistakes and supporting them even when they fail. At the same time, authoritative parents are very clear about what they expect from their children and are willing to confront a disobedient child. But they do so in a kind and loving manner.