The Importance of Parenting Styles in Early Childhood Development

"When my kids become wild and unruly, I use a nice, safe playpen. When they’re finished, I climb out.” – Erma Bombeck. Early childhood is the most rapid period of development in a human life. Although individual children develop at their own pace, all children progress through an identifiable sequence of physical, cognitive, and emotional growth and change. A child who is ready for school has a combination of positive characteristics: he or she is socially and emotionally healthy, confident and friendly; has good peer relationships; tackles challenging tasks and persists with them; has good language skills and communicates well; and listens to instructions and is attentive (World Bank 1). The interactive influences of genes and experience literally shape the architecture of the developing brain and the most important ingredient is the nature of a child’s engagement in the relationship with his or her parents (Bales 1). The parenting style of a mother or father has a strong and direct impact on the sequence of development through which the child progresses on the way to becoming a physically, mentally and emotionally healthy individual.
From birth onward, the physical needs of a child are fundamental to the child’s ability to maneuver through the many developmental stages of childhood. Protection from physical danger, adequate nutrition, adequate health care and immunizations, fundamental hygiene and motor and sensory stimulation all combine to insure that the child is physically capable of successfully moving through the various developmental stages (World Bank 2). At birth, babies’ basic sensory systems are working but these become more complex, coordinated and sophisticated during the early months (Honig 1). At this age, ...

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... progresses on the way to becoming a physically, mentally and emotionally healthy individual. A parent who hides in the nice, safe playpen does nothing to aid in the child’s progress or success and does nothing to assist in the child’s physical, cognitive or emotional development. A parent who chooses the playpen actually hinders the child’s chance of achieving a healthy life and in developing to his or her full potential. “There are two things we should give our children; one is roots, and the other is wings.” – Hodding Carter. A parent who is able to follow the advice of Hodding Carter and is able to develop a child’s foundation as well as provide the chance for the child to grow and develop his or her potential is a parent who has done all that is possible to aid the child in the attempt to successfully navigate through the process of becoming a healthy adult.