What kind of a parent are you?

We have all heard about helicopter parenting where the parents are always over-protective, but there are other forms of parenting too. Let's take a look at some of them:

Over-involved parenting style is often called tiger parenting. There is too much external control on the children and the kids become over dependent. Child psychologist Subha Narayan says, "If parents hover around the kids all the time, there are chances that kids don't develop a mind of their own.

They may appear to be successful in the initial years, but they are unable to adapt to the hardships of life." Research shows that these children are poor in independent decision making and at high risk of anxiety and depression.

The opposite of tiger is the jellyfish parenting style. These parents have few rules and are overtly lenient. They lack authority. The children of jelly parents may initially seem more confident, but without rules and direction children of jellyfish parents have poorer social and academic performance.

Ronita D'Souza, a school teacher says, "We tell parents to always maintain a healthy balance. But what we have noticed in children of overtly lenient parents is that they lack discipline and perform very poorly. They are the ones who are just not willing to follow any rules and are in a risk of taking drugs and alcohol."

Dolphin parents are a balance of extreme parenting. It is an ideal form of parenting. Like the dolphins, they are firm, yet flexible. This is the most balanced parenting style. Children are able to follow appropriate rules and guidance and are better able to establish healthy independence.

Children of dolphin parents are creative, confident, better in academic performance and have better social skills. They obey rules and grow up to be responsible, balanced and independent individuals.