The benefits and detriments to praising a child
Praising a child, especially young infants and toddlers, is common in child rearing and is a seemingly automatic response to a successful behavior (Brummeiman, Thomaes, Castro, 2014). According to Brummeiman, inflated praise is often given to a child in an attempt to boost their self-esteem. Two studies, a naturalistic, observational study and a controlled experiment looked at the drives behind an adult’s provision of praise (Brummeiman et al., 2014). This study indicated that adults are more inclined to provide this augmented praise if a child has low self-esteem. The researchers postulate that if given increased inflated praise overtime, a parent/caregiver will create an environment of unobtainable …show more content…
Regardless of genetics, their environment and social relationships created early in life have long-term effects on their growth. Self-esteem is a classic term used to predict future success of the child and it is clear that the development of high self-esteem is not black and white, especially with regards to praise. There seems to be a goldilocks effect involving praising a child; depending on that individualized child, one must provide just the right amount of praise to create an environment that fosters high self-esteem and self-confidence. In observational studies and behavior analyses, different types of praises have been defined and the effectiveness of them determined (Lee, 1996). For example, descriptive and sincere praise, which defines the actions of the child, is more beneficial than empty praise, such as a simple “good job!” Praise that is perceived as sincere or earned was found to be particularly beneficial to a toddler’s motivation (Henderlong and Lepper, 2002). Research by Carol Dweck has shown the benefits of praising a child’s efforts as opposed to their actual successes (Dweck, 2007). Self-esteem is dependent on many changing factors in a child 's life, especially their early social interactions. There are studies suggesting praise as a detriment to the development of high self-esteem and conversely studies showing the importance of praise in order to develop long-lasting interpersonal relationships and external motivation. Despite the present research, every child is unique and generalizing a child rearing technique to all the world 's children is not advisable. The parent or caregiver knows the child the best and should praise the child in an individualized
Praising a child, especially young infants and toddlers, is common in child rearing and is a seemingly automatic response to a successful behavior (Brummeiman, Thomaes, Castro, 2014). According to Brummeiman, inflated praise is often given to a child in an attempt to boost their self-esteem. Two studies, a naturalistic, observational study and a controlled experiment looked at the drives behind an adult’s provision of praise (Brummeiman et al., 2014). This study indicated that adults are more inclined to provide this augmented praise if a child has low self-esteem. The researchers postulate that if given increased inflated praise overtime, a parent/caregiver will create an environment of unobtainable …show more content…
Regardless of genetics, their environment and social relationships created early in life have long-term effects on their growth. Self-esteem is a classic term used to predict future success of the child and it is clear that the development of high self-esteem is not black and white, especially with regards to praise. There seems to be a goldilocks effect involving praising a child; depending on that individualized child, one must provide just the right amount of praise to create an environment that fosters high self-esteem and self-confidence. In observational studies and behavior analyses, different types of praises have been defined and the effectiveness of them determined (Lee, 1996). For example, descriptive and sincere praise, which defines the actions of the child, is more beneficial than empty praise, such as a simple “good job!” Praise that is perceived as sincere or earned was found to be particularly beneficial to a toddler’s motivation (Henderlong and Lepper, 2002). Research by Carol Dweck has shown the benefits of praising a child’s efforts as opposed to their actual successes (Dweck, 2007). Self-esteem is dependent on many changing factors in a child 's life, especially their early social interactions. There are studies suggesting praise as a detriment to the development of high self-esteem and conversely studies showing the importance of praise in order to develop long-lasting interpersonal relationships and external motivation. Despite the present research, every child is unique and generalizing a child rearing technique to all the world 's children is not advisable. The parent or caregiver knows the child the best and should praise the child in an individualized