As children grow up, they can be increasingly responsible for making their own decisions. However, until a young person is ready to live independently, parents still have a responsibility for guiding their children. In this essay, I will outline two main areas in which I believe parents should continue to exercise some control over their adolescent children.
The most important area is safety. Learning to manage risk is clearly very important. However, because children often have less experience of and therefore less awareness of adverse consequences, they are not always able to take sensible precautions. Because, for example, they may never have been robbed whilst outdoors at night, they may assume that this can never happen to them. Parents should, therefore, intervene to help their children understand and manage risk. In the example above, they could help their children arrange suitable transport.
Another area in which a degree of parental intervention is necessary is in considering long-term interests. Young people sometimes have a tendency to prioritize short-term needs and wants over longer-term goals. They may, for instance, choose to attend a sporting event or social occasion rather than study for an exam that is weeks in the future. Parents can help their children by insisting that certain responsibilities are met before privileges are granted. Children would not only be helped to achieve their goals but would also learn how to manage their time.
In summary, parents should allow their adolescent children a degree of autonomy but continue to exercise some control. If their intervene with a view to helping their children learn to make good decisions in dependently, they are likely to see the best outcome.
As
children
grow up, they can be
increasingly
responsible for making their
own
decisions.
However
, until a young person is ready to
live
independently
,
parents
still
have a responsibility for guiding their
children
. In this essay, I will outline two main areas in which I believe
parents
should continue to exercise
some
control over their adolescent children.
The most
important
area is safety. Learning to manage
risk
is
clearly
very
important
.
However
,
because
children
often
have less experience of and
therefore
less awareness of adverse consequences, they are not always able to take sensible precautions.
Because
,
for example
, they may never have
been robbed
whilst outdoors at night, they may assume that this can never happen to them.
Parents
should,
therefore
, intervene to
help
their
children
understand and manage
risk
. In the example above, they could
help
their
children
arrange suitable transport.
Another area in which a degree of parental intervention is necessary is in considering long-term interests. Young
people
sometimes
have a tendency to prioritize short-term needs and wants over longer-term goals. They may,
for instance
, choose to attend a sporting
event
or social occasion
rather
than study for an exam
that is
weeks in the future.
Parents
can
help
their
children
by insisting that certain responsibilities
are met
before
privileges
are granted
.
Children
would not
only
be
helped
to achieve their goals
but
would
also
learn how to manage their time.
In summary,
parents
should
allow
their adolescent
children
a degree of autonomy
but
continue to exercise
some
control. If their intervene with a view to helping their
children
learn to
make
good
decisions in
dependently
, they are likely to
see
the best outcome.