10 facts for parents to help raise happy children

1. Have children make people happier

In popular culture often appears bleak image of the parents, for whom education problems overshadow the pleasure of having children.

But the results of the studyS. K. Nelson, K. Kushlev, T. English, E. W. Dunn, S. Lyubomirsky.In Defense of Parenthood: Children Are Associated With More Joy Than Misery. University of California, Riverside (USA) show that on average mothers and especially fathers are happier childless people. In fact, parents are more positive emotions from child care than a lot of other activities.

2. The most happy - parents altruistic

If you believe the scientists, the willingness to put the child's interests above their own pays on the emotional level. According to the Free University of Amsterdam (Netherlands)Claire E. Ashton-James, Kostadin Kushlev, Elizabeth W. Dunn.Parents Reap What They Sow Child-Centrism and Parental Well-Being. , Altruistically minded parents find more meaning in life, and therefore happier. Taking care of children increases the sense of self-worth, and blunts the negative emotions.

The more effort parents invest in children's well-being - that, in fact, makes them altruistic - the more happiness they get from parenting, the better they feel their own importance.

Thus, what is good for your kids and good for you too.

3. Overprotection causes depression in children

Despite the importance of parental care, it can not be abused. Especially when the children become adults.

The study authorsHolly H. Schiffrin, Miriam Liss, Haley Miles-McLean, Katherine A. Geary, Mindy J. Erchull, Taryn Tashner.Helping or Hovering? The Effects of Helicopter Parenting on College Students' Well-Being. Published in the edition of the Journal of Child and Family Studies, interviewed 297 senior students about the behavior of their parents and the reaction to it. As a result, scientists have linked excessive care with a high propensity to depression among students, as well as understated the level of their independence and ability to adapt to life.

Parents need to understand how their intervention is appropriate at a particular stage of child development. They should change the approach, if children feel excessive care.

4. Rigid discipline traumatize the child's psyche

According to statistics, 90% of the families the parents at least once raised his voice to a child. Instead of his senses, this method may make the problem worse.

According to a study published in the journal Child DevelopmentMing-Te Wang, Sarah Kenny.Longitudinal Links Between Fathers' and Mothers' Harsh Verbal Discipline and Adolescents' Conduct Problems and Depressive Symptoms. , Which the authors observed the 967 families with 13-year-old children, a strict discipline worsened verbal behavior of adolescents and has led to the development of their depression. This is the case even if in general the parents were in a relationship with the children.

It is a mistake to believe that a close relationship with the child removes the effects of discipline (though he realizes that his love abused). In fact, parental love does not mitigate the effects of verbal punishment, and they damage under all conditions.

5. Regular sleep plays an important role in shaping a child's brain

To study the effect of sleep on cognitive function of the brain, scientists from over five years of the University College of London (England) was observed in 11 000 children, age at baselineYvonne Kelly, John Kelly, Amanda Sacker.Time for Bed: Associations With Cognitive Performance in 7-year-old Children: A Longitudinal Population-based Study. is three years. Experts came to the conclusion that there is a link between irregular sleep at the age of three and a decrease in the ability of reading, math and spatial thinking in children of both sexes. Presumably, at this age comes the important stage of cognitive development.

Regular sleep is essential for children's development. The earlier a child begins to observe, the better for mental performance.

6. The sharing of domestic work creates a healthy family atmosphere

The study authorsAdam M. Galovan, Erin Kramer Holmes, David G. Schramm, Thomas R. Lee.Father Involvement, Father-Child Relationship Quality, and Satisfaction With Family Work. Actor and Partner Influences on Marital Quality. Published in the edition of the Journal of Family Issues, concluded that the uniform distribution of domestic chores increases satisfaction with family members cooperative relationship. Moreover, a positive perception of the growing, if family members are engaged in work on the house at the same time. This creates a comfortable environment for the child's psyche.

7. TV child abuse decreases mental ability

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends limiting TV viewing to two hours a day for children aged two to five years and to prevent the screen at an earlier age.

University of Montreal study (Canada)Linda S. Pagani, Caroline Fitzpatrick, Tracie A. Barnett.Early Childhood Television Viewing and Kindergarten Entry Readiness. , Which was attended by 2,000 children, found that abused children TV to five years had a smaller vocabulary and less advanced math and motor skills.

8. Physical exercise increases the child's academic performance

Physical exercise - a great way to improve brain performance. As well as other scientific works, this study confirms the University of Dundee (Scotland)J. N. Booth, S. D. Leary, C. Joinson, A. R. Ness, P. D. Tomporowski, J. M. Boyle, J. J. Reilly.Associations Between Objectively Measured Physical Activity and Academic Attainment in Adolescents from a UK Cohort. . Watching the 11-year-old children, researchers found a positive effect of exercise on academic performance in mathematics, English and other school subjects. Interestingly, the girls this effect was stronger.

9. Excessive child care harms the mother's psyche

Some women raising a child brings more stress than work. But as it is possible to correlate with the findings of scientists that children make us happier? All the matter in relation to motherhood. If a woman is abused tutelage, it may harm themselves.

The study, published in the journal Journal of Child and Family StudiesKathryn M. Rizzo, Holly H. Schiffrin, Miriam Liss.Insight into the Parenthood Paradox: Mental Health Outcomes of Intensive Mothering. It includes observations for 181 mothers with children up to five years. Women who treat children from fanaticism and consider themselves more important for parents than fathers are more likely to suffer from depression and less satisfied with their lives.

You love your children, but do it correctly.

10. The presence of common parent does not make children similar personalities

Large parents may notice a curious feature: their children often have very different characters. According to a study published in the journal Behavioral and Brain SciencesRobert Plomin, Denise Daniels.Why Are Children In The Same Family So Different From One Another. , Siblings of individuals and / or sisters no more in common than is absolutely foreign to each other strangers.

This conclusion may seem strange, given that a large part of the genetic code common in children from parents is identical. But on the formation of personality affects the environment to a greater extent. So, brothers and sisters have different relationships with family, friends, classmates and so on. These differences and determine the nature of children.

Therefore, methods of education, which are perfectly suited to one child in the family may not work for another. It is therefore very important to look for an individual approach.