How Important Is Discipline in Parenting?

Families, communities, and nations are stronger when parents use appropriate discipline. Discipline means teaching, not punishment. There is a new parenting philosophy among young parents known as “gentle parenting.” Bethany Mandel described gentle parenting which is a “parenting approach, which at its core is responsive first and foremost to the feelings of children, trying to understand their motivations instead of correcting their behavior.” 

Mandel shared experiences of several proponents of gentle parenting. One parent reported that her eighteen-month-old son “wakes up three or four times to eat” every night. They give him a banana because he will cry if he does not get something to eat. The child is old enough to sleep all night, but the parents are still living sleep-deprived lives. The mother was on a parenting forum seeking an answer to her problem with the “tiny and irrational dictator.” Mandel wrote that the “secret tool” for the mother was to “stop feeding him in the middle of the night.”

No one expects a newborn baby to sleep all night. However, over a period of months, the child can be taught to sleep for longer periods of time and eventually for the entire night. However, the child will continue to awake if their demands are met. Mandel concludes her article with the following paragraph.

The data on how we’re parenting and the kinds of children (and parents) coming out the other side of modern parenting is equally bleak. In short: Nobody is particularly happy and how we’re raising our kids is partially why. Part of growing up is learning that perhaps your parents weren’t total idiots, that maybe they knew a thing or two when you were growing up. Raising children with a more traditional idea of discipline is retro, according to the Pew report, but it’s one of those things that is due for a comeback. Kids need discipline, parents need discipline, and it just might be what makes parenting a more enjoyable experience for kids and parents alike.

Parenting is much like many other parts of life where moderation is better than either extreme. When parents are too easy on their children, the children and family suffer. However, when parents are too hard on their children, the children and family suffer worse. The key is to hit a happy medium with love and appropriate discipline. With appropriate discipline, parents can strengthen their family, community, and nation.