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This article is interesting because it talks about the longer term effects of authoritarian parenting. I related to this article because I had a very hard time with authority figures growing up.

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Authoritarian parents whose child-rearing style can be summed up as "it's my way or the highway" are more likely to raise disrespectful, delinquent children who do not see them as legitimate authority figures than authoritative parents who listen to their children and gain their respect and trust, according to new research from the University of New Hampshire.

"When children consider their parents to be legitimate authority figures, they trust the parent and feel they have an obligation to do what their parents tell them to do. This is an important attribute for any authority figure to possess, as the parent does not have to rely on a system of rewards and punishments to control behavior, and the child is more likely to follow the rules when the parent is not physically present," said Rick Trinkner, a doctoral candidate at UNH and the lead researcher.

This is the first study to look at whether parenting styles influence adolescents' beliefs about the legitimacy of parent authority and if those perceptions affect delinquent behavior. The results are presented in the February issue of the Journal of Adolescence in the article "Don't trust anyone over 30: Parental legitimacy as a mediator between parenting style and changes in delinquent behavior over time."

The research was conducted by UNH researchers Trinkner; Ellen Cohn, professor of psychology; Cesar Rebellon, associate professor of sociology; and Karen Van Gundy, associate professor of sociology.

The researchers relied on data from the New Hampshire Youth Study, an ongoing, longitudinal survey of middle school and high school students examining the psychological, sociological, developmental, and legal factors that influence adolescent delinquency. Analyses reported are based on data collected over an 18-month period beginning in the fall of 2007.

"While it is generally agreed that authoritative parenting is more effective than authoritarian and permissive styles, little is known about why some parenting styles are more efficient than others. Our results showed that parental legitimacy was an important mechanism by which parenting styles affected adolescent behavior," Trinkner said.

The researchers evaluated three parenting styles: authoritative, authoritarian, and permissive.

Authoritative parents are both demanding and controlling, but they are also warm and receptive to their children's needs. They are receptive to bidirectional communication in that they explain to their children why they have established rules and also listen to their children's opinions about those rules. Children of authoritative parents tend to be self-reliant, self-controlled, and content.

On the other hand, authoritarian parents are demanding and highly controlling, but detached and unreceptive to their children's needs. These parents support unilateral communication where they establish rules without explanation and expect them to be obeyed without complaint or question. Authoritarian parenting produces children who are discontent, withdrawn, and distrustful.

Finally, in contrast to authoritarian parenting, permissive parents are nondemanding and noncontrolling. They tend to be warm and receptive to their children's needs, but place few boundaries on their children. If they do establish rules, they rarely enforce them to any great extent. These parents tend to produce children who are the least self-reliant, explorative, and self-controlled out of all the parenting styles.

"The style that parents used to rear their children had a direct influence on whether those children perceived their parents as legitimate authority figures. Adolescents who perceived parents as legitimate were then less likely to engage in delinquent behavior. Thus, authoritative parenting may be more effective than the other styles because this style makes adolescents more willing to accept their parents' attempts to socialize them and subsequently follow their rules," Trinkner said.

"Conversely, authoritarian parents have the opposite effect in that they actually reduce the likelihood of their children perceiving their authority as legitimate. Adolescents from authoritarian parents are more likely to resist their parents' attempts at socialization," he said.

While the children of permissive parents were less likely to respect their parents as authority figures, the researchers found they were no more or no less likely to engage in delinquent behavior.

According to the researchers, the results show that fostering and creating parental legitimacy is one technique for parents to exert control over their children. Additionally, parents are more likely to be viewed as legitimate authorities if they utilize authoritative parenting practices rather than authoritarian or permissive practices, which tend to undermine parental authority.

"Our data offer further evidence that authoritative parenting is an effective way for parents to successfully socialize their children and that its influence works largely through its effect on youth perceptions of parental legitimacy," Trinkner said.

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child psychology; parenting; child development; infant and preschool learning; poverty and learning; public health; educational policy; popular culture

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Controlling parents more likely to have delinquent children

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Authoritarian parents whose child-rearing style can be summed up as "it's my way or the highway" are more likely to raise disrespectful, delinquent children who do not see them as legitimate authority figures than authoritative parents who listen to their children and gain their respect and trust, according to new research.

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I liked this article because they discuss how authoritarian parenting can be passed off as “tough love” so people don’t realize the harmful effects on the child.

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When parents practice tough love parenting, they adopt a parenting style that psychologists call authoritarian parenting. Find out if this parenting style is right for your child.

In the 1960s, Diana Baumrind, a developmental psychologist at the University of California at Berkeley, defined three types of parenting styles. About two decades later, Maccoby and Martin expanded this 3-parenting-styles model using a two-dimensional framework. These two parenting dimensions describe how responsive and demanding a parent is. Together, they define four parenting styles: authoritative parenting, authoritarian parenting, permissive parenting and neglectful parenting.

What Is Authoritarian Parenting
In the Baumrind / Maccoby & Martin framework, authoritarian parenting is a parenting style that is characterized by high demand but low responsiveness. Authoritarian parents require their children to meet high standards, yet they are cold and aloof to the child's emotional needs.

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Self-motivated Learner

The Characteristics Of Authoritarian Parenting Style

1. Authoritarian Parents are Demanding.

Authoritarian parents have many strict rules and very high standards. Many of these rules are in place to exert control over child behavior or activities, and children are expected to follow the rules from a young age.

Some rules are arbitrary, and some are never even explained - the children are just supposed to know and follow them.

When a child fails to comply, whether to an explicit rule or an implicit one, authoritarian parents believe that the child has done that out of either defiance or incompetence. Neither is acceptable in an authoritarian parent's eyes.

2. Authoritarian Parents are Cold and Non-Nurturing.

Authoritarian parents seldom show warmth towards their children. These parents are often quite cold, unkind and harsh.

When they are upset with their children, authoritarian parents are also more likely to yell or berate.

They use the term "tough love" to justify their unresponsiveness and mean attitudes towards their kids.

Some of these parents also withhold love when the kids are not meeting their expectations.

Authoritarian parents believe that they are the authority figures and that their kids should follow orders and show obedience to authority blindly without question.

Some authoritarian parents may exert control over every aspect of their children's lives, from the ways the kids talk, to how they act at home or in public, what they wear, and what activities they participate in. They require children to be submissive in the parent-child relationship.

Authoritarian parents impose not only behavioral control but also psychological control over their children.

They don't believe that children have the right or ability to make their own decisions. Children's autonomous thinking is strongly discouraged. Kids are also discouraged from exploring or acting independently.

4. Authoritarian Parents Only Allow One-Way Communication.

Authoritarian parents rarely involve children in any decision making. They use reasons such as "because I said so" when they demand children to simply do as they're told.

They do not seek or allow feedback from their children.

Any attempt to reason with parents is seen as talking back or a challenge to the parents' authority.

Authoritarian parents expect children to be seen and not heard.

Have trouble dealing with toddler tantrums? Check out this step-by-step guide

5. Authoritarian Parents Tend to Use Harsh Punishment.

Authoritarian parents often use fear to control their kids. When children do not meet expectations of good behavior, the punishments or consequences can be harsh and stiff.

These parents are more likely to employ punitive measures to force kids into following rules. Punitive punishment include excessive time-outs, berating, shaming, or physical punishment (corporal punishment). Some authoritarian parents use psychologically controlling punishment, such as love withdrawal to punish.

Authoritarian parents focus on punishment over teaching or modeling desirable behavior.

6. Authoritarian Parents Are Less Agreeable

Agreeableness is a personality trait in the Big Five personality trait model.

Agreeable individuals are kind, sympathetic, cooperative, warm and considerate.

Studies have found that authoritarian parents tend to be less agreeable. They are more antagonistic and unkind.

Effects of Authoritarian Parenting on a Child

Although individual differences can affect a child's outcomes, studies have found that the following effects of being raised by authoritarian parents generally apply:

Highly compliant and obedient at home and around their parents.

Tend to be unhappy.

Less independent than other children.

Lack self regulation - become hostile and aggressive under pressure.

Have anger issues and show aggressive behavior problems outside the home, when the parents are not around.

Some are overly shy or fearful around people.

Poor social skills.

Less likely to feel socially accepted by peers.

Poor academic performance.

Less resilient and unable to bounce back after failure.

Less psychological flexibility and coping strategies.

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) symptoms.

Risk for drinking, smoking, substance abuse, or mental health problems such as anxiety or suicide attempts, and more likely to suffer from major depression.

Tough Love

Authoritarian parenting is prevalent in many countries, especially among the older generation. The newer generation parents start to recognize the harm authoritarianism can do. However, those who still want to use this approach to parenting try to portray it as an effective parenting method by calling it tough love, or old school parenting.

Tough love parenting is an example of authoritarian parenting.

Some authoritarian parents practice tough love parenting because they want to toughen up the child. They mistakenly believe that being harsh and mean to a child will make them strong.

Others use authoritarian parenting because they believe that being tough will instill discipline in the child, teaching the child how to obey authorities, and preventing them from making mistakes in the future and "ending up in jail".

Some are also worried that if they are not being authoritarian, their children might "walk all over them".

These uncompromising views are caused by the fact that authoritarian parents have more rigid views of the world. They often think in either-or terms and there's no middle ground.

For example, they believe that either they have complete control over their kids or the kids will completely rule the house and dominate them.

Parents who allow their kids to walk all over them are permissive parents. They are warm and nurturing, but they have no boundaries or do not consistently enforce them.

Permissive parenting does have its issues. But the opposite of permissive is not authoritarian.

The opposite of high-responsiveness and low demanding (permissive) is not low-responsiveness and high demanding (authoritarian).

The opposite of permissive is non-permissive!

The problem with being permissive is not that the parents are warm and responsive. Research shows that responsive parents actually help children form secure attachment, which is beneficial.

The actual problem with permissive parenting isnot setting limits or not enforcing them consistently.

Authoritative parenting is a non-permissive parenting style that is both nurturing and has high standards, and is a much better parenting approach than authoritarian parenting.

Does Tough Love Work

On the surface, it seems logical that practicing tough love parenting will prepare kids to face tough situations. But this has been proven wrong in research:

A study was performed in Israel where 18-year-old men have to serve in mandatory military service. It was found that male adolescents who grew up in a non-nurturing environment coped and adapted worse in the tough military scenery than those who grew up in a nurturing household (Mayseless, et al., 2003).

~ Turning Tantrums Into Triumphs

Related: Difference Between Authoritative and Authoritarian Parenting
Tiger Parenting

Tiger parenting is another example of authoritarian parenting.

Although most studies conducted in western societies indicate that authoritarian parenting is an inferior style of parenting, some studies have found contradictory results in school performance among other cultures such as African American, Hispanic, or Asian communities.

In fact, a 2011 Wall Street Journal article sparked a huge debate across America on this exact topic.

In the article, the author claimed that the Chinese Tiger Mom parenting was superior to "western" parenting style. She later retracted that claim citing it was a Wall Street Journal's marketing tactic and supported the notion that tiger parenting was not a good parenting style. However, at that point, authoritarian parents were already convinced that was the best parenting style.

Unfortunately, a study in the Chinese University of Hong Kong (1998) supported this claim. That study showed that in Hong Kong, kids with authoritarian parents had better academic achievement than those with authoritative parents.

So, is it possible that the authoritarian, rather than authoritative, parenting style is indeed a better choice in certain culture?

Not really.

There are inconsistent results among different studies even in those cultures.

Some researchers have found that even in Asia, authoritarian parenting is linked to worse academic performance while authoritative parenting produces better academic outcomes.

One Chinese study on second graders shows that children with authoritarian parents are not only worse in academic achievement, but are also rated as poorer in social competence by their teachers. These children often show more aggression and are less accepted by peers.

Mental health issue is another problem children raised by Asian authoritarian parents face.

Harsh discipline, a common authoritarian practice, is linked to more depressive symptoms among Chinese American adolescents.

In Hong Kong, 54% of students aged 15 to 19 years old report suicidal ideation, compared to 36% of junior high and high school students in the United States. This suicidal ideation is significantly associated with perceived authoritarian parenting, low parental warmth, high maternal over-control, negative child-rearing practices, and a negative family climate.

Need more proof?

Between 1996 and 2004, more than half of suicides (11 of the 20) at Cornell University were committed by students of Asian descent. During that period, only 14% of enrolled students were Asian or Asian American.

Data from the Centers for Decease Control and Prevention has also found that among women aged 15-24, Asian American females have the highest suicide rates across all racial or ethnic groups in the US.

No research is known to link the suicides at Cornell or the female suicidal rate directly to parenting style. But from the overwhelming amount of testimonials, you can imagine the damages this type of upbringing has done to many Asian and Asian American children.

Final Thoughts on Authoritarian Parenting

Child abuse by physical maltreatment is highly associated with authoritarian parenting style. This type of child maltreatment has a high risk of transferring from one generation to the next. Although it's not easy, the cycle of harsh parenting can be broken if the parent is determined to do so.

References:

Maccoby E, Martin J. Socialization in the Context of the Family: Parent-Child Interaction. In: Handbook of Child Psychology. Socialization, Personality, and Social Development. ; 1983.

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What is Authoritarian Parenting? Does Tough Love Work?

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When parents practice tough love parenting, they adopt a parenting style that psychologists call authoritarian parenting. Find out if this parenting style is right for your child. In the 1960s, Diana Baumrind, a developmental psychologist at the University of California at Berkeley, defined three types of parenting styles.

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In this clip you see how Meridas parents are very stern and not very loving in their actions and requests.

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This article discusses how authoritarian parenting can effect your child negatively. I related to all of the effects discussed, especially the social skills and emotional problems.

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© 2010-2017 Gwen Dewar, Ph.D., all rights reserved

The authoritarian parenting style is about being strict and stern. It insists on unquestioning obedience, and enforces good behavior through threats, shaming, and other punishments.

As defined by psychologists, it's also a style associated with less parental warmth and responsiveness (Baumrind 1991).

That doesn't bode well for a child's health outcomes, especially if she's growing up in an otherwise stressful environment. As I note in this article, studies suggest that responsiveness and warmth can protect kids from the effects of toxic stress.

But what about other things -- like behavior problems? Social Skills? Emotional well-being? Academic achievement?

If authoritarian parents are demanding, doesn't that at least suggest they'd produce kids who are better-behaved and more successful in the classroom?

Surprisingly, the evidence indicates otherwise. Here is an overview of the research.

Authoritarianism and the alternatives

Researchers recognize at least three alternatives to authoritarian parenting:

Permissive parents are emotionally warm, but reluctant to enforce rules or standards of conduct.

Uninvolved parents are like permissive parents, but they lack warmth

Authoritative parents, like authoritarian parents, set limits and enforce standards. But unlike authoritarian parents, authoritative parents are very responsive or nurturing.

In addition, authoritative parents encourage their kids to ask questions, and they explain the rationale behind the rules. Authoritative parents are also less likely to control kids through the induction of shame, guilt, or the withdrawal of love.

How does authoritarianism measure up?

Behavior problems

Mounting evidence that heavy-handed tactics make kids worse

When kids misbehave, it might seem tempting to enforce good behavior through threats, harsh punishments, and other forms of psychological control. But research suggests these tactics don't result in long-term behavioral improvements.

On the contrary, they seem to make things worse.

For instance, let's consider what psychologists call "externalizing behavior problems" -- disruptive, aggressive, defiant, or anti-social conduct. If authoritarian disciplinary tactics work, we should expect them to lead to fewer such behavior problems as children get older.

But that isn't what we observe when we track children's development. In a recent meta-analysis of more than 1400 published studies, Martin Pinquart found that harsh control and psychological control were actually the biggest predictors of worsening behavior problems over time (Pinquart 2017).

Kids subjected to these authoritarian tactics at one time point tended to develop more externalizing behavior problems at later time points.

What about other types of misbehavior? Like adolescent alcohol use? Once again, the most current evidence suggests that kids with authoritarian parents are more, not less likely to use and abuse alcohol (Glozah 2014; Calafat et al 2014).

Kids from authoritarian families are less resourceful, less socially-adept, and more likely to become involved in bullying.

Social skills and resourcefulness

This generalization appears to apply across a variety of cultures. Kids from authoritarian families may find it more difficult to fend for themselves and make friends. And they are at higher risk for involvement in bullying -- both as perpetrators and as victims.

Examples?

The United States

Studies of American adolescents have reported that teens with authoritarian parents were the least likely to feel socially accepted by their peers. They were also rated as less self-reliant (Lamborn et al 1991; Steinberg et al 1992; Steinberg et al 1994).

In addition, a recent study of U.S. college students found that students raised by authoritarian parents were more likely to engage in acts of bullying (Luk et al 2016).

China

One study of 2nd graders in Beijing found that kids from authoritarian families were rated as less socially competent by their teachers. They were also more aggressive and less likely to be accepted by their peers (Chen et al 1997). Other Chinese research has linked the punitive aspects of authoritarianism with poorer social functioning (Zhou et al 2004).

Cyprus

When researchers questioned 231 young adolescents about their cultural values and experiences with peers, they found that kids from authoritarian homes were more likely to have experienced bullying -- both as victims and perpetrators (Georgiou et al 2013).

Turkey

In a study of Turkish high school students, kids from authoritarian families were rated as less resourceful than kids from authoritarian or permissive parents (Turkel and Tzer 2008).

South America and Spain

Researchers in Latin cultures report that authoritarian parents are more likely to have kids with low social competence (Martinez et al 2007; Garcia and Gracia 2009). In addition, a Spanish study found links between authoritarian parenting and bullying. High school students with authoritarian parents were more likely to be involved in bullying, particularly if their parents attempted to control them through the use of punitive discipline (Gómez-Ortiz et al 2016).

The Netherlands

In Dutch studies, kids with authoritarian parents were rated as less helpful and less popular by their teachers and classmates. They were also rated as less mature in their reasoning about moral issues (Dekovic and Jannsens 1992; Jannsens and Dekovic 1997).

Emotional problems

Does authoritarian parenting put kids at greater risk of anxiety, low self-esteem, and depression?

Maybe yes.

For example, in a behavioral genetics study of Chinese twins, researchers found that kids with authoritarian fathers were more likely to suffer from a psychiatric disorder -- even after accounting for the influence of genes (Yin et al 2016).

Other research in China suggests that authoritarian parenting puts children at higher risk for depression if they have trouble with self-control (Muhtadie et al 2013). And kids with harsh parents tend to have more trouble regulating their emotions (Chang 2003; Wang et al 2006).

In Caribbean countries, kids raised by authoritarian parents are more likely to suffer from depression than kids raised by authoritative parents (Lipps et al 2012).

Studies of Spanish and Brazilian adolescents have reported that teens from authoritarian homes had lower self-esteem than did teens from authoritative or permissive families (Martinez and Garcia 2007; Martinez and Garcia 2008).

German researchers found that teens with authoritarian parents were more likely to suffer from trait anxiety. They were also more likely to experience depersonalization--the feeling of watching oneself act without being in control of one's actions (Wolfradt et al 2003).

Links between authoritarianism and emotional problems have also been found in the United States. Behavioral genetics research suggests that authoritarian parenting contributes to the risk of major depression later in life (Long et al 2015).

In addition, U.S. studies indicate that adolescents and adults are more likely to suffer depressive symptoms if they characterize their parents as having used authoritarian practices in the past (King et al 2016; Rothrauff et al 2009). Children are more likely to develop symptoms if their mothers embrace authoritarian child-rearing tactics (Calzada et al 2015).

And research in other societies paints a similar picture:

But the authoritarian parenting style isn't always linked with emotional problems. Some studies of American adolescents have failed to find emotional differences between kids from authoritarian, authoritative, and permissive homes (Lamborn et al 1991; Steinberg et al 2006).

And research on adolescents in the Middle East has also failed to find a link between authoritarian caregiving and psychological problems like depression (Dwairy 2004; Dwairy and Menshar 2006).

Why the inconsistencies?

I suspect the effects of authoritarianism depend on how harsh, cold, or punitive the parent is.

For instance, some research suggests that corporal punishment is linked with higher rates of depression and anxiety among children.

It also seems likely that culture plays a role. If kids perceive authoritarianism as normal and mainstream, they may be less distressed by it (Dwairy 2004).

Experimental research suggests that authoritarian approaches interfere with learning.

In a fascinating study of kindergarteners, Melissa Kamins and Carol Dweck have shown that a common tactic of authoritarian caregiving--shaming a child for poor performance-- can make kids perform more poorly on problem-solving tasks (Kamins and Dweck 1999).

Moreover, experiments suggest that people learn better from positive feedback than from negative feedback, and this may be especially true for kids (Schmittmann et al 2006; van Duijvenvoorde et al 2008).

Other studies report correlations between authoritarianism and lower school achievement.

For example, a study of adolescents in the San Francisco Bay Area found that the authoritarian parenting style was linked with lower school grades for all ethnic groups (Dornbusch et al 1987). These findings are supported by other, similar studies (Steinberg et al 1989; Steinberg et al 1992).

Counter evidence: Are the effects less harmful when parents are less educated? Or live in disadvantaged neighborhoods? Or Chinese?

Some studies of kids from lower socioeconomic groups have failed to show any difference in academic performances between authoritative and authoritarian families (Lamborn et al 1996; Steinberg et al 2009).

It's even been suggested that kids with relatively less-educated parents do better in school when they are from authoritarian homes (Leung et al 1998).

Perhaps kids living in dangerous, disadvantaged neighborhoods are less likely to run afoul of authority figures-in and out of school-when they are taught unquestioning obedience.

Maybe peer pressure swamps the effects of parenting. Some peer groups support school achievement. Others discourage it. One study of U.S. school students found that Asian Americans tended to have peer groups that encouraged scholarship, and they performed well at school even when their parents were authoritarian. African Americans tended to have peer groups that rejected good students. These kids did more poorly in school even when their parents were authoritative and highly-educated (Steinberg et al 1992).

Authoritarian parenting may have different meanings in different cultures. Ruth Chao has argued that the Chinese version of authoritarian parenting is fundamentally different. Unlike Western authoritarian parents, Chinese authoritarian parents have closer relationships to their kids, and closeness is a predictor of higher school achievement (Chao 2001).

There is also controversy about the effects of authoritarian care-giving in traditional Chinese families.

On the one hand, authoritarianism has been linked with poorer school performance in Beijing (Chen et al 1997) and Taiwan (Pong et al 2010).

On the other hand, studies of Hong Kong Chinese (Leung et al 1998) and of Chinese immigrants to North America (Chao 2001) have linked authoritarian parenting with higher school achievement.

Why the discrepancies?

Researchers have suggested several possibilities.

But I'm a bit skeptical about the idea that authoritarian parenting could make some kids into better students. The experimental research is compelling. Moreover, achievement in math, science, and many other academic fields depends on critical thinking-something that authoritarian parenting seems to discourage.

Indeed, there is evidence that schools run along authoritarian principles produce inferior students. In a study comparing American high schools, Lisa Pellerin found that authoritative schools got the best results. Authoritarian schools had the worst rates of dropouts (Pellerin 2004).

Authoritarian parents might see themselves as champions of morality. But, as noted above, studies suggest that kids with authoritarian parents are actually less advanced when it comes to self-regulation and moral reasoning (Dekovic and Jannsens 1992; Jannsens and Dekovic 1997; Karreman et al 2006; Piotrowski et al 2013).

Moreover, kids from authoritarian families may be more likely to "tune out" their parents as they get older.

For instance, when researchers tracked American middle and high school studies over 18 months, they found that kids who identified their parents as more authoritarian were more likely to reject their parents as legitimate authority figures. They were also more likely to engage in delinquency over time (Trinker et al 2012).

And in a study of American undergraduates, researchers asked students who they consulted when they had to make moral decisions. Undergraduates with authoritative parents were the most likely to say they would talk with their parents.

Students with authoritarian parents--like students from permissive families--were more likely to reference their peers (Bednar et al 2003).

More information

For more information about the four basic parenting styles, check out "Parenting styles: A guide for the science-minded."

For a more information about the ways that researchers define and identify authoritarian parents, see "The authoritarian parenting style: Definitions, research, and cultural differences."

And if you're interested in Chinese child-rearing, see my article, Traditional Chinese parenting: What research says about Chinese kids and why they succeed

Copyright © 2006-2020 by Gwen Dewar, Ph.D.; all rights reserved.
For educational purposes only. If you suspect you have a medical problem, please see a physician.

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Content last modified 6/2017

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Authoritarian parenting: What happens to the kids?

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© 2010-2017 Gwen Dewar, Ph.D., all rights reserved The authoritarian parenting style is about being strict and stern. It insists on unquestioning obedience, and enforces good behavior through threats, shaming, and other punishments. As defined by psychologists, it's also a style associated with less parental warmth and responsiveness (Baumrind 1991).

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Authoritarian Parenting Style Clip Example

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This article discusses the characteristics of authoritarian parenting style. I liked how it also talked about the effects on the child.

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Authoritarian parenting is a parenting style characterized by high demands and low responsiveness. It is one of the parenting styles described by developmental psychologist Diana Baumrind who, in addition to authoritarian parenting, also identified two other parenting styles: authoritative parenting and permissive parenting.

Others believe that there are more styles of parenting beyond these three. For instance, some say that there are four parenting styles: authoritarian, authoritative, permissive, and uninvolved or neglectful.

Parents with an authoritarian style have very high expectations of their children, yet provide very little in the way of feedback and nurturing. Mistakes tend to be punished harshly. When feedback is given, it is often negative.

Yelling and corporal punishment are also common with the authoritarian style. People with this parenting style often use punishment rather than discipline. They are commonly not willing or able to explain the reasoning behind their rules.

This article discusses the characteristics of authoritarian parenting and the factors that cause it. It also covers the impact that this parenting style has on children and how to respond if you or your partner is an authoritarian parent.

Characteristics of Authoritarian Parenting

Baumrind believed that one of the major roles that parents play in a child's life is to socialize them to the values and expectations of their culture. How parents accomplish this, however, can vary dramatically based upon the amount of control they attempt to exert over their children.

The authoritarian approach represents the most controlling style. Rather than valuing self-control and teaching children to manage their own behaviors, the authoritarian parent focuses on adherence to authority. Instead of rewarding positive behavior, the authoritarian parent only provides feedback in the form of punishments for misbehavior.

Here are some of the most common traits of an authoritarian parent.

Demanding, But Not Responsive

Authoritarian parents have lots of rules and may even micromanage nearly all aspects of their children's lives and behaviors, at home and in public. Additionally, they also have many unwritten rules that kids are expected to follow-even though children receive little to no explicit instruction about these "rules." Instead, children are simply expected to know that these rules exist and follow them.

Little Warmth or Nurturing

Parents with this style often seem cold, aloof, and harsh. They are more likely to nag or yell at their children than offer encouragement and praise. They value discipline over fun and expect that children should be seen and not heard.

Little Explanation for Punishments

Parents with this style usually have no problem resorting to corporal punishment, which often involves spanking. Rather than relying on positive reinforcement, they react swiftly and harshly when the rules are broken.

Few Choices for Children

Authoritarian parents don't give children choices or options. Parents set the rules and have a "my way or the highway" approach to discipline. There is little room for negotiation, and they rarely allow their children to make their own choices.

Impatient With Misbehavior

Authoritarian parents expect their children to simply know better than to engage in undesirable behaviors. They lack the patience for explaining why their children should avoid certain behaviors and expend little energy talking about feelings.

Mistrusting

Authoritarian parents don't trust their children to make good choices. Parents with this style don't give their children much freedom to demonstrate that they can display good behavior on their own. Rather than letting kids make decisions on their own and face natural consequences for those choices, authoritarian parents hover over their kids in order to ensure that they don't make mistakes.

Unwilling to Negotiate

Authoritarian parents don't believe in gray areas. Situations are viewed as black and white and there is little to no room for compromise. Kids don't get a say or a vote when it comes to setting rules or making decisions.

Authoritarian parents can be highly critical and may use shame as a tactic to force children into following the rules. Rather than looking for ways to build their children's self-esteem, these parents often believe that shaming will motivate children to do better.

Using phrases such as "Why do you always do that?," "How many times do I have to tell you the same thing?," or "Why can't you do anything right?" is an example of authoritarian parenting.

Causes of Authoritarian Parenting

Authoritarian parenting is often not something that parents engage in intentionally. Some factors that may contribute to the use of an authoritarian style include:

Authoritarian upbringing: People who parent this way were often raised by authoritarian parents or in an authoritarian culture. One study, for example, found that parents exposed to authoritarian parenting as children were more like to raise their own kids with similar patterns and attitudes.

Less agreeableness: Research also suggests that authoritarian parents tend to score lower on the personality trait known as agreeableness. Less agreeable people tend to be less empathetic and more hostile. They also have more difficult relationships in general, including with their own children.

More neuroticism: Studies also show that authoritarian parents also tend to score higher on measures of neuroticism. Neuroticism is a personality dimension that involves emotional stability and is marked by a tendency to experience anxiety, doubt, depression, and other negative feelings.

Effects of Authoritarian Parenting

Parenting styles have been associated with a variety of child outcomes in areas like social skills and academic performance. The children of authoritarian parents may:

Act fearful or overly shy around others

Associate obedience and success with love

Conform easily, yet also experience depression and anxiety

Display more aggressive behavior toward others

Display fewer prosocial behaviors

Have difficulty in social situations due to a lack of social competence

Have lower self-esteem

Have more negative symptoms such as hyperactivity and conduct problems

Struggle with self-control because they are rarely able to make choices and experience natural consequences

Because authoritarian parents expect absolute obedience, children raised with this style are typically very good at following rules. However, they may lack self-discipline.

Unlike children raised by authoritative parents, children raised by authoritarian parents are not encouraged to explore and act independently, so they never really learn how to set their own limits and personal standards. This lack of self-discipline can ultimately lead to problems when the parental or authority figure is not around to monitor behavior.

While developmental experts agree that rules and boundaries are important for children, most believe that authoritarian parenting is too punitive and lacks the warmth, unconditional love, and nurturing that children also need.

Tips for Avoiding Authoritarian Parenting

If you or your co-partner were raised by an authoritarian parent, you may fear repeating those patterns with your own children. Or you might notice that you or your partner already follow an authoritarian parenting style that you want to avoid. There are things that you can do to respond to these situations and learn to use a more authoritative parenting style instead.

Learn more about authoritative parenting. The more you understand the characteristics of the authoritative style and how it benefits children, the more aware you can become of your own approach to parenting. Educating yourself about how to parent is an important first step.

Listen to your kids. Work on making an effort to listen to what your kids have to say without getting impatient or giving a knee-jerk response. Listening and validating your child's emotions are both essential for helping kids learn to recognize their emotions and develop a sense of self-control.

Establish household rules. Create expectations and guidelines, and make sure that everyone in your household, including your children and other caregivers, understands these rules. When everyone understands the rules and why they exist, you'll have an easier time enforcing them and following through with consistent consequences.

Use logical consequences. When household rules are broken, follow through with consequences that are consistent and reasonable. Avoid corporal punishment and don't shame your children for making mistakes.

Consider a parenting class. If you or your partner are concerned about your parenting style, consider taking a parenting class or talking to a family therapist. Therapy can be a great opportunity to learn and practice parenting strategies that you can then put to use in your own household.

A Word From Verywell

Authoritarian parenting is characterized by very high expectations for children with a lack of feedback and responsiveness from the parent. Authoritarian parents punish mistakes harshly, but offer little explanation for their rules and punishments.

This parenting style is connected to a number of negative outcomes for children including lower self-esteem, social difficulties, and poor self-control, but there are strategies for adopting a more positive parenting style.

While an authoritarian approach might be effective in situations that require strict adherence to the rules, it can have negative consequences when overused as an approach to parenting. If you notice that your parenting style tends to be more authoritarian, consider looking for ways that you can begin incorporating a more authoritative style into your daily interactions with your children.

Frequently Asked Questions

What cultures use an authoritarian parenting style?

Research suggests that the authoritarian parenting style may be more prevalent in traditional Asian parenting practices. This parenting style is more prevalent in non-Western cultures that place a great deal of emphasis on respecting elders. However, there is evidence that the harmful effects predicted by Baumrind and others are also less apparent in these cultures.

Why do parents choose authoritarian parenting?

Parents may use this style for a variety of reasons. It may be the result of their cultural background, their personality, or their own upbringing. In many cases, they may not recognize their own behavior because it is simply how they were raised and they don't know any other way of responding.

How does authoritarian parenting affect learning?

Research has found there is a significant relationship between authoritarian parenting and children's academic success. Kids raised by authoritarian parents tend to be less successful both educationally and in their later career paths.

Additional Reading

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The authoritarian parenting style is defined by strict rules and little warmth. Learn more about authoritarian parenting, including examples and its effects.