Parents are being warned to stop 'snow ploughing' when it comes to their children, as paediatricians have suggested the approach may ruin confidence and development.
The term, also known as bulldozer parenting, describes a style where parents try to remove any obstacles from a child's path so they don't experience pain, failure, or discomfort, according to WebMD.
Lighthouse parenting as an alternative
Dr Sasha Hall spoke to Katie Thistleton and Guvna B on the CBeebies Parenting Download Podcast to explore when to offer guidance and when to stand back as a parent.
She said: "There's also lighthouse parenting, and it's one that lots of people aspire to. And so if we're saying that the lighthouse is, you know, they're seeing the storm, they're weathering the storm, but they're not actually removing the rocks or the waves or anything for your child."
"And it's saying if we kind of see yourself as the lighthouse - so for example, if you're at soft play or in the park and you're seeing things happen, you are just kind of looking out for the dangers, but you're only intervening if it's something very serious."
"So it's not like snow plough parenting, where you are removing all obstacles. You're letting your child experience these things so they can learn from them."
Negative effects on development
Although parents will be doing this from a place of love and care, paediatricians have warned that it could have a negative impact on a child's development and confidence.
An article on the WebMD website said: "Because you want your child to be successful and happy, letting them fail and experience disappointment can be a real challenge. But failure is important. And when a child isn't allowed to experience disappointment and failure, they aren't able to develop the necessary skills to live their own life."
"They need to learn how to pick themselves up after failure and find another way to succeed. Repeated and constant snowplough parenting tactics have negative effects on childhood development, and reinforces the idea that children are not capable of doing things on their own."
"Snowplough parenting stunts skill development. By not letting their child deal with challenging situations, snowplough parents inhibit them from developing necessary skills such as stress management, coping with failure, and decision-making."
