Teen Pregnancy

Common Child Behavior Myths

""What Grown-Ups Understand About Child Development: A National Benchmark Survey" measured the child development knowledge of 3,000 adults and parents. Secondarily, it examined what the general public thinks about selected policies that impact children and families. The survey was sponsored by CIVITAS, ZERO TO THREE and BRIO Corporation, three organizations dedicated to the welfare of young children, and conducted by DYG, Inc., a nationally respected research company led by Daniel Yankelovich."

Here are some findings from this study that you need to be aware of:

Babies Can't Be Spoiled

57 percent of parents of young children (0-6 years of age) and 62 percent of all adults incorrectly believe a six-month-old can be spoiled.
44 percent of parents of young children and 60 percent of grandparents incorrectly believe picking up a three-month-old every time he cries will spoil the child.
There is also confusion about what activities are and are not spoiling.
45% of parents of young children incorrectly believe that letting a two-year-old get down from the dinner table to play before the rest of the family has finished is spoiling.
30% of parents of young children incorrectly believe that letting a six-year-old choose what to wear to school is spoiling.

What you can do to overcome: Trust your instinct to pick up and comfort a crying baby. Realize that giving positive attention to a child and encouraging them to make their own choices are not spoiling them. You want your child to grow into a healthy and independent adult. Learn about child development so you can know what activities are age appropriate for your child. Stand your ground firmly when it comes to outdated information. Advice-givers generally mean well and may have a lot of good things to say, but you are the mom and you need to raise your child the way you see fit just like your mom made her own choices when she raised you and one day your child will be faced with the same choices to make. Makes you wonder what they'll be saying in another 30 years. : )

Parents' Expectations Aren't Always Appropriate

51 percent of parents of young children expect a 15-month-old to share her toys, and 26 percent of all adults expect a three-year-old to sit quietly for one hour at a time - both unrealistic expectations, according to experts.
26 percent of all adults, and 23 percent of parents of young children believe that a child as young as six-months will not suffer any long-term effects from witnessing violence. Child development research shows it can have long-lasting, detrimental effects on a child's social and emotional development and his developing brain.
61 percent of all adults, and 55 percent of parents with young children, do not know when young babies begin to sense and are affected by the moods of others. This is crucial because child development research shows that if a caregiver is particularly anxious or depressed, it can have a damaging effect on a baby's development.
40 percent of parents of young children incorrectly believe a 12-month-old who turns the TV on and off repeatedly while her parents are trying to watch it, believe she is "angry and trying to get back at them."
72 percent of parents of young children were unaware that children as young as four months of age, can experience real depression; 51 percent believe children cannot experience depression until they are at least three years of age.

What you can do to overcome: Learn about child development. The better you understand what your child is truly capable and not capable of the more reasonable your expectations will be.

Parents Value Less Beneficial Forms Of Play

Many parents place too much emphasis on less valuable forms of play, such as flashcards, educational television and computer activities.
Parents also don't understand the importance of the connection between physical play, such as playground activities, and intellectual development.

What you can do to overcome: Realize that one of the very best things you can do for your young child is to simply get down on the floor and play with them. Wrestle, tickle, giggle, play with cars and trucks and blocks and dolls or whatever your child is interested in.

Teen Pregnancy Information Center

Common Child Behavior Myths

Babies Can't Be Spoiled

Parents' Expectations Aren't Always Appropriate

Parents Value Less Beneficial Forms Of Play