Sociology

For this assignment you need to provide the following:

Topic: You should type your topic in a word document, as well as one or two sentences specifically identifying what you want to research for your paper. There are numerous ways of approaching any topic, so these descriptive topical sentences should help me steer you in the right direction for your critical writing assignment.
You should also list any course readings you are planning to use in ASA format.
You should list your FIVE (5) additional sources in ASA format. The purpose of turning in your topic and sources early is to provide me with an opportunity to review the sources and ensure they are accurate and appropriate for the course. A wide variety of scholarly work will be acceptable, but the key will be finding the proper scholarly and peer-reviewed work. All sources in a references section should be alphabetized by the author’s last name.
You should include a brief outline of the structure of your paper, including major points you wish to make.

The following are the instructions for the overall paper worth 150 points.

For the writing assignment in this course, you should write a 4-6-page essay in which you critically review the literature related to one aspect of your chosen topic using no fewer than 5 (FIVE) additional scholarly journal articles from the TWU Library website. You may use readings from this course as part of your essay, but you must use the FIVE additional scholarly sources in addition to whichever course readings you wish to include. Newspapers, Wikipedia, Tumblr, Facebook, Buzzfeed articles, and all other non-scholarly sources are strictly prohibited.

The writing assignment in this course is considered formal writing – this means that I expect you to do all of the following: Write with purpose. Each sentence should contribute to your overall writing (no fillers like very very very very interesting). Additionally, you should use the same glossary of terms that the readings’ authors use; do not make up your own descriptors or tell the reader “Basically…” Your tone should be literal and formal using proper English spelling and grammar. Do not use clichés, text speak (e.g. ROFL), emoji, non-text characters, or non-scholarly sources. You should write in paragraphs that are organized to fit together. You should use ASA-style citations and references for every formal writing assignment.

ANSWER

Helicopter Parenting and Its Consequences on Children Growth and Development

Introduction

Over the years, more and more people are becoming parents, but this is not without some side effects. This linked to the different parenting styles that have varying consequences on the children. Parenting style is a collecting of parental practices, attitudes and non-verbal expressions that influence the nature of child-parent relationships. Helicopter parenting is one of the most common parenting styles in the modern world (Yu-Juan and Pan-Chang, 2021). However, it has its own consequences to the growth and development of a child. Therefore, this paper will focus on helicopter parenting and its consequences on child growth and development. Helicopter parents are linked with hyper involvement in the life of a child and over-controlling which is detrimental to the child’s growth and development. It refers to parents who control how much time their children spend on screen and other electronic devices. The parenting practices of helicopter parents are often damaging to the child’s health and development.

Helicopter Parenting

Helicopter parenting is a relatively recent phenomenon that has emerged in the last few years. The helicopter parenting is a form of parental interference, in which one parent or guardian watches over the other at all times, and both parents and guardians are constantly communicating with each other about what to do (Reed, Duncan, Lucier-Greer et al., 2015). Parenting by helicopter means that parents or guardians are always talking to each other about their children often at the same time. A study showed that parents are more inclined to helicopter their children than ever before. They do this by spending a lot of time with the child, giving them special attention and spending a lot of time on reading to them. The research also shows that these parents have no idea what they are doing and like to give their children advice when they shouldn’t listen to it.

Considerably, the helicopter parents can be either good parents or bad parents depending on whether they are loving or neglectful. They can be relatively happy when their children have resolved their problems, but they can also experience depression if the issues remain unresolved for too long (Cui, Darling, Coccia et al., 2019). The best way to understand the problem of helicopter parents is through the example of a particular person. This person is a mother who has four children, but she wants to be the best mother to all four kids at least once in her lifetime. She knows that her role as a parent is more than just providing food and upbringing her kids. She also needs to spend time with them, have an intimate relationship with them, and not neglect their other activities because they are all too busy working and studying. And so she is helicopter parenting, pushing her children towards their goals while getting most out of their time with them, while prioritizing work over all else.

Anxiety, Low Self-esteem and Depression

Helicopter parenting is often linked to parents hovering over their children when they are upset or angry. When the child is not involved, this hover-chasing behavior results in them feeling anxious and anxious feelings might make it difficult to concentrate. Helicopter parenting raises the child’s anxiety and depression levels. This is because they are always looking out for guidance when left alone and become too nervous to make decisions on their own. Multiple studies over the past decade have summarized the psychological and social risks of being a helicopter parent. (Ganaprakasam, Davaidass and Muniandy, 2018). argues that adolescents are less open to activities and new ideas and are more vulnerable, self-conscious and anxious. Helicopter parenting has also led to struggles of fear and failure. These children tend to have an overwhelming fear of failure and get anxious about disappointing others. This leads to the fear of failure and low self-confidence which can result to anxiety or depression.

Helicopter parents also tend to blame their children for problems and may feel embarrassed if they find out that their children have nonconventional behavior or relationships. While helicopter parenting can be adaptive for people who have a strong bond to their children, it is detrimental for those who do not have such a strong bond. Ideally, the helicopter parent is someone who feels obligated to raise their child. The parent gives all the attention, but the child fails to reciprocate with any form of affection. This leads to many psychological problems such as low self-esteem, anxiety and depression in children.

Less Independence and Fear of Failure

There are a lot of positive and negative side effects of helicopter parenting. Diversity is one of them, as children tend to learn to learn from their parents. Children who were raised by helicopter parents become less independent and less able to make choices for themselves. The relationship between the parent and child also changes and becomes more strained, which may lead to problems in adulthood (Yu-Juan and Pan-Chang, 2021). In the past few decades, advances in technology have made it possible to get a bird’s eye view on our lives, allowing people to monitor every single aspect of their lives. Sometimes a parent may feel the need to hover over their child. Whether it’s to prevent them from making a mistake, or even potentially too much which could be detrimental to their health.

Helicopter parenting is used to describe the practice of excessively demanding and controlling parenting. This often leads to unhealthy child behavior, an overprotective mindset, and a lack of self-esteem among children. Helicopter parents are often criticized for using fear to control their children or for spending too much time with their children. A helicopter parent sees their child from a distance, never participates in their activities and only gives advice when the child acts up. Children who are raised with this behavior tend to be afraid of making mistakes and not trying new things, which leads them to turn into unhappy adults (Ganaprakasam, Davaidass and Muniandy, 2018). Ten years ago, some people were blaming parents for the problem of overprotective parenting. Today, we see that everything from the rise of online parenting to the increasing use of helicopter parents to social media is highly correlated with overprotective parenting.

Conclusion

In summation, parenting style can greatly affect the growth and development of a child. Parents are encouraged by helicopter parenting to get their kids involved in every activity and with all activities, but the effects of helicopter parenting can be negative. Children with helicopter parents have been more prone to weaknesses either shown in their behavior such as they are hyper sensitive or easily upset or non-allowed behaviors such as they like to have everything done for them. The effects of helicopter parenting on mental health has also increased with most children expressing anxiety, fears and depression.

References

Cui, M., Darling, C. A., Coccia, C., Fincham, F. D., & May, R. W. (2019). Indulgent parenting, helicopter parenting, and well-being of parents and emerging adults. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 28(3), 860-871.

Ganaprakasam, C., Davaidass, K. S., & Muniandy, S. C. (2018). Helicopter parenting and psychological consequences among adolescent. International Journal of Scientific and Research Publications, 8(6), 378-382.

Ganaprakasam, C., Davaidass, K. S., & Muniandy, S. C. (2018). Helicopter parenting and psychological consequences among adolescent. International Journal of Scientific and Research Publications, 8(6), 378-382.

Reed, K., Duncan, J. M., Lucier-Greer, M., Fixelle, C., & Ferraro, A. J. (2016). Helicopter parenting and emerging adult self-efficacy: Implications for mental and physical health. Journal of Child and family Studies, 25(10), 3136-3149.

Yu-Juan, Y. A. N., & Pan-Chang, K. O. N. G. (2021). Helicopter parenting: Conceptions, influences and effects. Journal of Psychological Science, (3), 612.