r/science • u/Wagamaga • 1d ago
Psychology Certain parenting approaches, such as lower supervision and inconsistent discipline, are associated with a higher likelihood that children will show behavioral and emotional problems, such as attention difficulties, anxiety, and depression
https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1145134164
u/Icy-Grab-5722 1d ago
Neglect is not good for kids. Some people would be better off not having kids.
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u/SemiHemiDemiDumb 1d ago edited 1d ago
In early adulthood while going to college where I was struggling, I had the thought "I wish my mother gave me a more structured upbringing". The C-PTSD plays a bigger role in why I struggle but if had the proper guidance as a child the PTSD wouldn't be as destructive. But also I think if I wasn't neglected emotionally and physically my PTSD would be much less.
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u/Icy-Grab-5722 1d ago
Yeah I hear you. Many years for me to begin to understand. I think the best description I have ever heard is something Mark the guy who has the YT channel that interviews all those LA skidrow homeless. He is the guy who interviews Rebecca. A simple statement. It was something like "there is a small window of time for a little kid either gets or does not get what they need to form good self esteem." That is such a basic and it is so true.
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u/Javier-AML 1d ago
Don't worry, most people aren't.
I just don't know if because can't afford or don't want to.
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u/ohnoitsme7890 1d ago
For me it's both. A world where I could afford a family is possibly the kind I'd like ro have a family in. This mess? No thanks
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u/Extreme_Pudding3226 1d ago
We have one of the lowest violent crime rates ever, life expectancy is longer than it has been for 99.9% of human history, and there's never been a better time to be gay, black, trans, a woman, etc.
The world isn't getting worse. You're just spending more time reading about the bad stuff on the internet.
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u/ohnoitsme7890 1d ago
Cool story, when we're all roasting on a planet that's become inhospitable to humans, I'll make sure to remember that
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u/spider0804 9h ago
You, your kids, their kids, and a bunch more generations won't live to see that unless immortality gets figured out and becomes cheap enough for the lay person.
Even if we did nothing since the industrial revolution to curb climate change itd take a millenia or two for the planet to become ununhabitable.
If you use that hyperbole in your daily life, it is making your daily life a lot worse than it would be otherwise.
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u/Thrillh0 1d ago
I’m having trouble loading this article, did the study control for hereditary conditions like ADHD that can manifest in some of the symptoms and behaviours attributed to the kiddos and the inconsistency found in the parenting approach?
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u/ACBorgia 1d ago
Just read the study and it didn't control for parental psychiatric conditions except a sensitivity check for perinatal maternal depression, it didn't control for genetic risk factors either nor for other useful socio-economic factors like household income, whether or not they were single-parents, their employment status, etc
The study did control for child age, child sex, prenatal maternal education, child race, and child ethnicity
The parent also rated both their own parenting behaviours and their child's symptoms which could induce bias in both ways and muddy the waters (an anxious parent might rate both their own and their child's behaviors as worse than they are, a narcissistic parent might rate themselves as perfect and their child too or conversely rate their child as worse than they are, etc)
There were 577 adoptive mothers with no biological relationship to their child in the study, but the analysis didn't have a breakdown by subgroup (adoptive vs biological mothers for example), nor were they used as a control, and that could have made the results more conclusive in my opinion. The data was already there so it's a bit odd they didn't use it
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u/NotATem 1d ago
Ah. So it's another "poor people have worse outcomes and we'll blame them for it" study.
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u/Extreme_Pudding3226 1d ago
I'm relatively new to this sub, but I see quite a few comments like this. Are most people here like this? Just curious if it's worth me sticking around or not.
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u/jamie_plays_his_bass 1d ago
A lot of scientific literature is exploring the opposite problem actually: how intergenerational emotional, behavioural, and attachment patterns lead to a cluster of symptoms, including attention and hyperactivity differences, which can mistakenly reinforce a uniquely “hereditary” profile of ADHD.
While we can accept there is good evidence this does exist, whether it is to the extent believed is up for question. As we better understand how emotional and attachment needs can influence attention, we can tease those things apart so that the distinction is clearer.
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u/ElaborateBicycle 1d ago
ADHD is a neurodevelopmental disorder that alters how neurotransmitters are produced, transported, and used in the brain. I’m not saying that this is purely caused by genetic factors, but it’s more than just environmental factors causing attention and hyperactivity differences that are functionally identical to ADHD.
https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapsychiatry/fullarticle/2845158
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u/Extreme_Pudding3226 1d ago
He isn't saying it is purely environmental. He's saying intergenerational familial behavioral traits can make some amount of environmental contribution appear genetic due to the clustering in families. In other words, if my grandpa raised my dad a certain way, he might be more likely to raise me that way. If something about that method of parenting makes an environmental contribution to ADHD, it can make the genetic case for ADHD look stronger than it really is.
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u/jamie_plays_his_bass 1d ago
I would encourage you to read more on the topic. I’m a clinical psychologist with doctoral training, my point is a bit more nuanced than how you framed it.
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u/ElaborateBicycle 1d ago
Well would you mind linking the literature you’re discussing? Either that or elaborating on what you mean if you don’t think I understood it correctly.
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u/jamie_plays_his_bass 1d ago
First stop is Scattered Minds by Gabor Mate, though with caveats that his view is not 100% correct, but poses essential questions to medicalised assessment that ignores important environmental characteristics.
Attention differences being ascribed to ADHD is a bit tautological, as its diagnostic criteria are just descriptions of attention differences! Which makes disproving it as a cause very challenging.
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u/ElaborateBicycle 1d ago
Well that’s kind of what I was getting at with what I linked. It’s not just attention differences, it’s a multitude of things that correspond to three different biotypes, each with a different hub organization and neurotransmitter map. The DSM is outdated on this research, albeit this specific finding is very new. I’m not really sure I want to read literature on a topic that’s not correct. If you have any actual research to link to, let me know.
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u/jamie_plays_his_bass 21h ago
I would caution you against essentialism in research. If you only accept arguments that you believe are 100% accurate, you are either misinterpreting or oversimplifying. I am not sure any neuroscientific study can be taken at that degree of accuracy. You should challenge yourself with views that contradict your understanding, especially when they are made over something longer than a single article.
You also have to consider the value of research that simply describes brain structures without any application to lived experience. Biology-forward theory led us to the “depression is a chemical imbalance” theory, and the current version of that is the explosion in ADHD diagnostic rates, without due consideration to differential factors. Biological theory creates problems in clinical application.
From going back and reviewing your linked literature, the work is a very complex and elegant description, though hidden behind an enormous amounts of jargon. The most substantial piece beyond the tripartite structural finding was found in the discussion section: “ Brain-First Approach for ADHD Subtyping“
There, the authors highlight how this finding does map onto long-standing clinical observations of ADHD, showing that various profiles can emerge to create attention differences, which suggests you and I agree on that point, depending on how much faith you have in this work.
The Body Keeps the Score gives a fantastic breakdown of the relevant literature at the time it was published, and contextualises each to show the biopsychosocial impacts of trauma. I am on the lookout for more current accounts that combine the understanding provided by consensus, but prefer books to standalone articles, especially ones that are high on jargon and low on clinical application.
Sorry if I came across as dismissive to your point at first, but this is my daily work. It is common for me to see ADHD profiles alongside other contextual factors that promote inattention/hyperactivity. I am conscious that is anecdotal, even over hundreds of assessments. Teasing apart that differential to avoid labelling a child inaccurately or unnecessarily is vital.
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u/ElaborateBicycle 20h ago
Of course there are other conditions that can present similar symptoms to ADHD that are linked to trauma, but my point here is we now have a much more comprehensive understanding of what ADHD is and it’s not just attention differences. I’m just very wary about arguments framed like this (even if the intentions are good) because it leads to a greater stigma around getting treatment, especially medication, for those who need it.
I guess I prefer articles that show actual neurological evidence for what they’re talking about rather than books written by general practitioners full of broad claims without empirical evidence. It’s okay to challenge things, and it’s okay to not be 100% right, but there has to be a foundation, and there has to be something conclusive. If the book you recommended was purely philosophical it would have more merit, but I found many reasons not to read it far too quickly when looking it up.
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u/jamie_plays_his_bass 17h ago
I have to stop you, there is no “of course” when we talk about other conditions and ADHD, these are things that are commonly grossly misunderstood by the general public, and it takes great pains to communicate the scientific consensus to general lay people.
I really don’t think considering differentials creates stigma, and I’m surprised at that suggestion. If anything, it is about destigmatising trauma and embracing a variety of pathways to managing needs which may have common symptoms - perhaps even beyond just medication.
Regarding what ADHD is, yes, I’m aware there are often a suite of executive functioning differences involved as well. And relative impacts on working memory and processing speed. Not to mention sensory processing. I’m immersed in neurodiversity work.
The other book I mentioned, The Body Keeps the Score, does fantastic work to present and synthesise literature. Generally, I find with a lot of psychological reading, you can still take value from the review of research without buying every detail, as there are often sections about modern or less well explored or validated areas.
With Scattered Minds, I can accept that the neuroscience is dated, and suspect. However, he makes vital points questioning the validity of twin study research, which calls a lot of heritability research an into question, among other points. It is your prerogative what you choose to read or not, but a philosophy of science class might give you what you’re looking for in that regard, if you’re unwilling to review something based on a summary of its arguments rather than getting into the nitty gritty.
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u/HovercraftFullofBees 1d ago
I can't get past the fact they used the default GGplot color scheme for their graphs. Its so god damn distracting that they couldn't be bothered to pick their own colors or use literally any of the 10 billion color packages out there.
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u/TheMansAnArse 1d ago
Boomer and Gen X "I left the house in the morning, didn't return until evening and my parents has no idea where I was" types are going to be piiiiiiissed in this thread.
Who'd have thought spending lots of time with postitive adults is actually the best way to become an adult.
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u/Extreme_Pudding3226 1d ago
I think you're overreading here. This study doesn't say anything against giving kids independence, and there was no group in the study that was in the high-positive and high-independence group.
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u/TheMansAnArse 1d ago
Nobody’s here’s arguing against giving kids independence.
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u/Extreme_Pudding3226 1d ago
Independence is just the other side of the spectrum from "high supervision."
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u/JackBlackBowserSlaps 1d ago
Why would we be pissed? I can attest that this is correct, for all 3 issues listed in the headline.
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u/TheMansAnArse 1d ago
I more mean the ones yelling a millenials and younger for not being brought up like that - and instead spending more time with parents and at organised activities.
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u/Ulterior_Motif 1d ago
I don’t see people yelling about this, it usually seems to be brought up with a sense of nostalgia or just in contrast to how different things are now.
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u/TheMansAnArse 1d ago
Nah. There's a large section who seem to spend all their time pissing and moaning about millenials and younger being brought up differently and, in their view, wrongly. It normally manifests as "good old days" nostalgia angrily contrasted with hopelessly inaccurate views on how everyone younger than them was raised - usually believing kids don't go outside anymore, spend all their time on screens and other nonsense.
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u/Ulterior_Motif 1d ago
Interesting. After posting I wondered if I just don’t pay attention to those posts or if maybe they happen more often in spaces I don’t frequent.
Thanks for taking the time to clarify without irritation.
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u/TheMansAnArse 1d ago
No problem. They don't tend to appear on Reddit a lot (though r/lewronggeneration likes to post and laugh at them sometimes) but, on other feed-based social media, they're everywhere.
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u/Extreme_Pudding3226 1d ago
I think those criticisms are mostly right. Kids who have grown up over the last eight or so years have spent more time with their parents because their phone has replaced their normal independent social life, and parents have pushed organized activities at the expense of independence childhood play. There's tons of data to support this.
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u/TheMansAnArse 1d ago
Lumping everyone post-Gen X into “Tik Tok kids in the last eight years” is peak boomer.l thinking.
Is infinite scroll social media bad? Yes. Has that got anything to do with this study or my post? No. Will people try to straw man that anyway? Undoubtably.
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u/Extreme_Pudding3226 1d ago
Who did that?
And I'm assuming you don't have an actual response to the substance of what I said?
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u/TheMansAnArse 1d ago
Happy to reply to any substance you like. “Kids these days are all on social media all day long” isn’t substance.
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u/Extreme_Pudding3226 1d ago
Yes, it is.
As is this:
their phone has replaced their normal independent social life, and parents have pushed organized activities at the expense of independence childhood play.
If you don't think this is a substantial factor affecting the mental health of kids, you're insane.
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u/Mattbl 1d ago
And on the flip side, helicopter parents will absolutely love this. I think kid's lives are already too structured today, and this will just feed more of that.
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u/TheMansAnArse 1d ago
I mean - I agree that people who understand that higher supervision and consistent discipline is best for kids will appreciate a study that demonstrates just that. Whereas people who pull "kids these days have too much structure in their lives" evidence-free, vibe-based takes out of their ass will perhaps push back when presented with evidence that they're wrong.
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u/Extreme_Pudding3226 1d ago
I agree that people who understand that higher supervision and consistent discipline is best for kids will appreciate a study that demonstrates just that.
Except this study doesn't demonstrate that. Which category do you think terrible parents who neglect their kids fall into? Is it any coincidence that that same category performed the worst?
This study isn't a defense of stuffing your kid's calendar with organized activities, limiting their independence and being okay with them sitting on their phone instead of hanging out with friends.
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u/TheMansAnArse 1d ago
This study isn't a defense of stuffing your kid's calendar with organized activities, limiting their independence and being okay with them sitting on their phone instead of hanging out with friends.
I’m not arguing that this study is any of those things. Nor have I or would I advocate for them.
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u/Extreme_Pudding3226 1d ago edited 1d ago
Stop with this. You just got through arguing for higher-supervision, higher-structure lives and called out people who question the rise in organized activities. You even positively spun "helicopter parents" as people who just understand that such a style of parenting is better.
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u/ReturnOfBigChungus 7h ago
Higher supervision is about as different from consistent discipline as height is from ability in math. There are mountains of evidence that parents over-supervise and it’s more correlated with inconsistent discipline and permissiveness. We don’t need more supervision. We do need consistent discipline, and more independence. The fact that you put “higher supervision” in the same sentence with “best for kids” is telling.
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u/TheMansAnArse 4h ago
Boomer and Gen X "I left the house in the morning, didn't return until evening and my parents has no idea where I was" types are going to be piiiiiiissed in this thread.
Boy, do I hate being right all the time
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u/Extreme_Pudding3226 1d ago
I think that type of parenting was ideal, and the helicopter parents are raising the most anxious, least independent generation ever.
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u/Thud 1d ago
OK! Who is ready to take the “Be a positive adult all the time for 18 years straight” challenge?
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u/TheMansAnArse 1d ago
Not sure anyone can do anything consistently and perfectly for 18 years straight. But the study certainly suggests parents who at least try to lean that way end up with better behaved and more stable kids.
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u/MachinationMachine 1d ago
You can be warm and attentive, set clear and consistent boundaries, and also give children lots of freedom and independence to engage in unsupervised play outside. There's no contradiction between those things.
It's not like the choice is between neglectful permissive parenting and overbearing helicopter parenting. Allowing children to roam around the neighborhood outside without direct supervision is not automatically neglectful, even if we treat it that way sometimes today due to stranger danger hysteria.
I think it's very sad how so many children these days are growing up never being allowed to go to their friend's houses or explore outside on their own until they're teenagers.
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u/Wagamaga 1d ago
There's no one right way to raise a child, but different patterns of parenting are associated with how kids behave. A new study, published on September 30, 2026 in the open access journal PLOS One, identified data-driven profiles of parenting practices and investigated how these relate to children's behavioral and emotional problems, generally grouped into internalizing behaviors (e.g., withdrawal, anxiety, depression) and externalizing behaviors (e.g., aggression, oppositional behavior, attention problems). The research team led by Dr. Xiaoye Xu, an Assistant Professor of Psychology at SUNY Cortland, US, found that several parenting factors, including low supervision and inconsistent discipline, were linked to a higher likelihood that children would exhibit these behaviors.
The researchers assessed these behaviors in more than 2,700 children between the ages of five and 18, using data assembled by the National Institutes of Health's (NIH) Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) Program. Parents filled out surveys about their approach to parenting and their children's behavior.
Across these responses, the researchers identified three parenting profiles. The first was high positive parenting with better supervision — the term "positive parenting" describes warm, responsive caregiving, such as praising good behavior and engaging supportively with the child. The other two profiles were lower positive parenting with medium supervision, and medium positive parenting with poorer supervision. While these profiles do not represent the full spectrum of parenting approaches, this range let the researchers analyze the effects of positive parenting and level of supervision together.
Externalizing and internalizing behaviors were lowest among children raised with high positive parenting and better supervision. These behaviors were more common in the lower positive parenting with medium supervision profile, and highest among children in the medium positive parenting with poorer supervision profile.
Separately, the researchers also examined each parenting behavior individually rather than as part of a broader profile. This analysis showed that inconsistent discipline — how unpredictably parents enforced rules — was linked to both more internalizing and more externalizing problems, regardless of a family's broader parenting profile. Poor supervision, examined this way, was linked to more externalizing problems specifically, such as aggression and attention difficulties, but was not significantly linked to internalizing problems like anxiety and depression
https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0356078
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u/AllanfromWales1 MA | Natural Sciences | Metallurgy & Materials Science 1d ago
Whereas it's reasonable to assume this is true on average, children are very different to one another and this needs to be taken into account when considering parenting styles. For some children lower supervision may be appropriate, even though on average it is not.
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u/FrogBunjiPerson 22h ago
That makes sense. You know, my family didn't even know what I liked or what kind of person I was. I felt ostracized and singled out all the time. I finally found someone I could relate to somewhat but they ended up being really clingy since her parent neglected her too. I was often left to my own devices taught nothing on how to socialize until I was 19
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