Raising Children: What Type of Parent Are You?

Created: 07/14/2022, 12:23 p.m

By: Judith Brown

There are different types of parents and different parenting styles.

Do you find yourself in one of the three common types?

Munich – Helicopter, lawn mower, submarine parents: Are you already spinning with the numerous types of parents that now exist?

We create clarity by providing an overview of the most common types of parents.

Perhaps you will recognize yourself in this.

Raising Children: What Type of Parent Are You?

How you raise your children depends on what you want for them.

What type of parent are you?

(Iconic image) © Joseffson/IMAGO

Which parenting style parents use and which is best for them depends on the values ​​and beliefs they want to instill in their children and what they want for their offspring.

Parents are always faced with major challenges when raising their children.

It often happens that they fall into certain patterns and take on certain roles from which they find it difficult to get out.

A closer look at the individual parent types does not hurt to take a closer look at their upbringing methods and possibly reflect on them.

1. Helicopter parents simply mean too well when it comes to caring for their children

Most people are probably familiar with the species “helicopter parents”.

You don't exactly have the best reputation.

After all, typical features of their upbringing are that they circle around their children like helicopters and virtually monitor them.

According to one researcher, this overprotection can even lead to children today being unhappier than ever before.

Helicopter parents want to be in control of all aspects of their child's life.

This includes, for example, kindergarten, school, leisure time and the children's circle of friends.

Although children of so-called helicopter parents grow up in a very sheltered manner, experts say this style of upbringing can cause considerable damage to the children.

According to one expert, overprotection is more like neglect.

The independence and self-esteem of the little ones are particularly at risk.

The educational scientist Albert Wunsch warns that the offspring could develop into behaviorally disturbed and spoiled children.

Other researchers, on the other hand, came to the conclusion that they still have better chances of education and success in life than other children.

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Since helicopter parents usually have problems letting go of their children, you should – if you have just found yourself in the description – heed a few tips.

Instead of buzzing over your children like a helicopter, you should also take the perspective of your child and look at the world from his or her eyes.

Also, learn to distinguish when your child needs protection and when it just needs support.

Also, help your child develop their "inner radar" that they can rely on when you're not around.

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2. Lawnmower parents want their kids to get rid of any obstacles

When you think it can't get any worse, then the lawnmower parents come along.

They're sort of a step up from the helicopter parents.

While they monitor their children, lawnmower parents even go one step further: they intervene by removing any obstacles in their children's path.

So instead of preparing them for life and its challenges, they want to save the little ones from arguments and failures.

So it can happen that parents intervene in a situation with another child on the playground where it is not really necessary.

However, this prevents the children from finding solutions themselves.

This parenting style is sometimes continued at school and it even comes to the point where lawnmower parents do the homework for their protégés.

However, this educates the little ones to be passive and prevents them from developing independence, personal responsibility and determination.

Although they actually want to do the children a favor, lawnmower parents tend to have the opposite effect: “In reality, they bring up dependent little tyrants.

At home they are tyrants, elsewhere they are anxious because they lack self-confidence," warns family therapist Anette Frankenberger from Munich, for example.

3. Submarine parents don't care about their children's school careers

So-called submarine parents behave very differently from helicopter or lawnmower parents.

As the name suggests, they first disappear when it comes to their children's school career.

In reality, this means that U-Boot parents do not appear at any parent-teacher conferences and do not appear to be interested in their children's school affairs.

However, as soon as the child has serious problems at school and, for example, even a transfer is at risk, the parents suddenly appear with the teachers.

Then they can definitely bring out the heavy artillery.

Because if the complaints to teachers or directly to the school administration have no effect, U-boat parents are happy to threaten them with a letter from a lawyer.

Submarine parents also want to use this strategy to protect their children from nasty surprises at school.

However, according to one educator, this approach and their upbringing harm children even more than those of helicopter or lawnmower parents.

This article only contains general information on the respective health topic and is therefore not intended for self-diagnosis, treatment or medication.

In no way does it replace a visit to the doctor.

Unfortunately, our editors are not allowed to answer individual questions about clinical pictures.