The term "helicopter parenting" may sound unfamiliar to some, but it is a fairly common practice among parents in Indonesia. Like a helicopter always hovering overhead, parents with this type of parenting style tend to constantly monitor and control their children's every move.
To learn more about helicopter parenting, its causes, impacts, and how to overcome it, read this article to the end.
What Is Helicopter Parenting?
Helicopter parenting is a term used to describe a pattern of parental behavior in which parents are overly involved and control every aspect of their children's lives. Parents with this parenting style tend to manage all of their children's affairs to protect them and ensure they always get the best.
While well-intentioned, helicopter parenting can have several negative impacts on children's development, including social, emotional, and cognitive development. This is because parents with helicopter parenting often don't allow their children space to be independent. As a result, children can exhibit overly spoiled behavior and struggle to become independent, especially as adults.
Causes of Helicopter Parenting
Some factors that can contribute to helicopter parenting include:
1. Parental Fear of Bad Things
Every parent naturally feels the need to protect their children from physical, emotional, or social dangers. However, parents with a helicopter parenting style tend to experience excessive fear and believe that their children will experience harm if they are not fully supervised.
2. High Social Pressure and Expectations
In a competitive environment, most parents strive to ensure their children excel in everything, especially in education and achievement. This behaviour then drives parents to be overly involved in their children's lives, even to the point of choosing educational fields or careers that the child may not be interested in.
3. Lack of Trust in Children
Some parents may doubt their children's ability to overcome challenges or make decisions on their own. This drives them to take full control of their children's lives in the hope of minimizing the risk of harm or failure.
4. Personal Experiences and Behavioral Models
Parenting styles adopted by parents are often influenced by their personal experiences or their upbringing. If they were raised in an overprotective and controlling environment, they will tend to apply the same parenting styles to their children.
Negative Impacts of Helicopter Parenting on Children
Even if it is done with good intentions, helicopter parenting can hurt children. Check out the detailed explanation below:
1. Overdependence
Children raised in a helicopter parenting environment tend to rely on their parents for everything, including completing tasks, handling problems, or making decisions. This tendency develops because, from an early age, they were not accustomed to or given the opportunity to develop these skills.
2. Lack of Decision-Making Skills
Children who are constantly guided by their parents in every decision, both large and small, may not have the opportunity to develop good decision-making skills.
Therefore, they tend to have difficulty evaluating options, considering consequences, and choosing the right course of action without parental guidance. As a result, children will have great difficulty making their own decisions in the future.
3. Low Self-Confidence
Children who are overly controlled and controlled tend to have low self-confidence. They often feel unable to take risks or face challenges without parental intervention. Thus, helicopter parenting can hinder the development of a child's self-confidence and courage to face challenging situations.
4. Emotional Stress
Pressure to meet high parental expectations or a fear of making mistakes can cause stress in children. Children often feel burdened by these expectations, leading them to strive for perfection. If this pressure persists for a long period, children are at risk of developing mental health problems, such as anxiety and depression.
How to Deal with Helicopter Parenting for Parents
For parents, here are some steps you can take to avoid or minimize helicopter parenting:
- Give children the opportunity to take responsibility and make their own decisions, from small things like completing homework to choosing extracurricular activities. Don't forget to support them in facing the consequences of these decisions.
- Allow children to experience failure, as failure is one of the best ways to learn. Therefore, let children take risks and learn from their own mistakes.
- Always provide support and guidance. While it is important to train children to learn independently, don't forget to supervise them and provide constructive advice.
This concludes our explanation of helicopter parenting, including its definition, causes, impacts, and how to overcome it. It is natural that as a parent, you always want the best for your child.
However, understanding the limits of what you can interfere with is also crucial. For example, you can give your child the freedom to overcome their challenges while still providing the necessary support, guidance, and facilities.
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