Category: Early Childhood Development

Sensitive children — those who feelthings deeply, who are easily overwhelmedby intense stimulation, who noticesubtleties that others miss, and whorespond more intensely to both positiveand negative experiences — are amongthe most misunderstood children inthe parenting literature. They are frequently told they are“too sensitive,” encouraged to toughenup, and pushed into situations thatoverwhelm rather than develop them.And…

One of the most important things parentscan do for their children’s long-termdevelopment is to give them practicemaking real decisions — at every age,within appropriate limits, with realconsequences. But knowing which decisionsare appropriate for which ages is notalways obvious — and getting it wrongin either direction has costs. Too much decision-making too earlyoverwhelms children with choices…

Authoritarian parenting is one of thefour parenting styles identified inDiana Baumrind’s foundational research —and the one most commonly associatedwith strict, demanding, old-fashionedparenting. It is also one of the mostmisunderstood — frequently confusedwith authoritative parenting, andfrequently defended as the approachthat produces disciplined, respectful,high-achieving children. The research tells a more nuanced story.This article covers what authoritarianparenting actually…

Decision-making is one of the mostimportant life skills a child willdevelop — and one of the least explicitlytaught. Most parents assume that childrenwill learn to make good decisions throughexperience — and they will, to someextent. The research suggests thatintentional, supported practice ofdecision-making produces significantlybetter outcomes than experience alone. This article covers what the researchshows about…

A strong sense of identity — a clear,stable, and positive understandingof who one is — is one of the mostimportant foundations of psychologicalwellbeing across the lifespan. Researchconsistently finds that people witha strong sense of identity show bettermental health, stronger relationships,greater resilience in the face ofadversity, and more purposeful engagementwith life than those whose senseof self…

Permissive parenting is one of thefour parenting styles identified inDiana Baumrind’s foundational research —and the one most commonly confusedwith good parenting in contemporaryculture. The emphasis on warmth,responsiveness, and child-centerednessthat characterizes permissive parentingfeels intuitively right to many parents —and the research consistently findsthat it produces worse outcomes thanthe approach that combines thosequalities with clear structure and…

Screen time is one of the most debatedtopics in contemporary parenting —and one of the most anxiety-inducing.Parents are bombarded with warningsabout the dangers of screens, conflictingadvice about time limits, and guiltabout their own screen use. The researchon children and screens is more nuancedand more specific than most populardiscussions acknowledge. This article covers what the researchactually…

Grief is one of the most universalhuman experiences — and one of themost difficult to navigate as a parent,particularly when the person grievingis your child. The death of a grandparent,a pet, a family friend, or — in themost devastating circumstances — aparent or sibling; the loss of ahome, a school, a friendship; thegrief of family…

Emotional coaching is one of the mostevidence-based parenting approachesavailable — and one of the least knownoutside of professional circles. Itwas developed and researched by psychologistJohn Gottman at the University of Washington —whose decades of research on relationshipsand emotion are among the most influentialin all of psychology — and it describesa specific set of parenting responsesto…

Gratitude and generosity are two ofthe qualities most strongly associatedwith human flourishing — and two ofthe qualities that parents most wantto cultivate in their children. Theyare also deeply connected: researchconsistently finds that grateful peopleare more generous, and generous peopleare more grateful — the two qualitiesreinforce and amplify each other inways that make cultivating both togethermore…