Washington, Aug 1 (IANS) The right match between parenting style and child’s personality can practically halve depression and anxiety symptoms in school children. But mismatches can lead to twice as many depression and anxiety symptoms.
University Washington psychologists found this during a three-year study, the Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology reports.
‘This study moves away from the one-size-fits-all approach to parenting, and gives specific advice to parents on how to mitigate their child’s anxiety and depression,’ said Cara Kiff, psychology resident at the University of Washington School of Medicine.
‘We’re considering characteristics that make children vulnerable to anxiety and depression, and factoring in how that shapes how kids react to different parenting approaches,’ said Kiff, who led the study, according to a Washington statement.
‘We hear a lot about over-involved parents, like ‘tiger moms’ and ‘helicopter parents,’ said study co-author Liliana Lengua, psychology professor at Washington.
‘It is parents’ instinct to help and support their children in some way, but it’s not always clear how to intervene in the best way,’ added Lengua.
Kiff, Lengua and Nicole Bush — co-author and postdoctoral fellow at University of California, San Francisco — studied interactions between 214 children and their mothers during interviews at home.
An almost even mix of boys and girls participated in the study and were, on average, six years old when the study began.
