Educational Style and How to Modulate It | Parenting and Socio-Emotional Development

The educational style is an implicit, emotional and, in a way, unconscious combination that defines how we interact with our children in various situations. This interaction profoundly influences a child's social-emotional development. Parents tend to use a mix of two key components in their relationship with their children: monitoring and emotional warmth.

El monitoring refers to setting limits and providing structure for the child to develop healthily, while the emotional warmth encompasses all caring and supportive attitudes toward children, such as showing affection, encouraging their efforts and respecting their opinions.

It is essential that the control is adapted to the child's age. As they grow older, their needs for support and protection change, while emotional warmth, while necessary throughout life, changes depending on the child's age and needs.

Modulating Control and Emotional Warmth According to Age

During the first two years of life, parents exercise high levels of control to ensure the safety and security of their children, meeting their most basic needs. Starting from two or three years, children begin to develop autonomy, and it is vital to encourage them to explore and experiment, setting clear boundaries that guide their behavior.

Among the three and five years, autonomy is consolidated and self-esteem begins to form, so control must gradually decrease to allow children to face small problems and achieve goals on their own. Adequately modulate the control it is crucial to avoid overprotective behaviors, which can lead to dependence, low self-esteem and an inability to resolve conflicts.

As for the emotional warmth, it is important to maintain high levels of affection, while modulating its shape according to the child's personality and age. For example, some children may need more physical contact, while others value verbal support more. As children become teenagers, the need for physical affection may decrease, but emotional support and approval are still essential to their well-being.

Benefits of Balancing Control and Emotional Warmth

Numerous studies have shown that an adequate balance between control and emotional warmth acts as a protective factor against anxiety and low mood in children. When parents manage to properly regulate these components, they promote in their children the autonomy, the self-esteem And the confidence in their abilities, providing them with a solid foundation for their emotional and social development.