Economic factors influence parenting style

Washington : Pushy or laid back? Parenting styles are shaped by economic factors that incentivise one strategy over others, a study has found. Researchers suggest that economic conditions, especially inequality and return to education, influence child-rearing strategy. "All parents want their children to succeed, and we argue that the economic environment influences their methods of childrearing," said Fabrizio Zilibotti, professor at Yale University in the US.

"For instance, greater occupational mobility and lower inequality today makes an authoritarian approach less effective than generations ago," said Zilibotti.
"It is not that parents spare the rod because they are more concerned about their children's wellbeing now than they were 100 years ago. Rather, parenting strategies adapted to the modern economy, he said.

Parents are driven by a combination of altruism - a desire for their children to succeed - and paternalism that leads them to try to influence their children's choices, either by molding their children's preferences or restricting them.