Question

The nursing student observes a parent instructing her child to sit still by controlling the child's behavior through unquestioned mandates. She keeps telling her child to sit still "because I said so!" The nursing student recognizes this style of parenting to be

a. permissive.
b. authoritative.
c. authoritarian.
d. none of the above

Answer 1

The authoritarian style of parenting is characterized by strict rules, close monitoring, and a lack of warmth, which aligns with the behavior of the parent instructing her child to sit still 'because I said so.'

Step-by-step explanation:

The parenting style observed by the nursing student, where a parent requires unquestioned obedience and issues mandates like 'sit still because I said so,' is most indicative of an authoritarian style of parenting. This style is characterized by strict rule enforcement without much explanation for the rules, close monitoring of children, and a general lack of warmth or affection in the interactions. In contrast, an authoritative parent while also setting clear rules, would provide rationales for them and show more nurturing and warmth. A permissive parent would make few demands and might not set fixed rules for behavior like sitting still. Lastly, an uninvolved parenting style would reflect indifference toward the child's behavior and a lack of rule-setting or active parenting.