WWSWD?

Please read the summary below and answer the question: 

What Would a Social Worker Do?

A social worker meets with a single mother in her home for an assessment in order to provide parenting skills ordered by the court system. The social worker walks into the home to find a mother attempting to feed her 2 year old daughter who is running around the house, without clothes on, while throwing her toys around the room. The mother apologizes to the SW when she walks in but states that she believes that her daughter will come to her when she is ready. The mother stated that she was abused as a child and wants to make sure that her daughter is treated with respect and therefore allows her to "be herself" and does not punish her in any way. The social worker thanked the mother for being open to discussing her parenting style and the reasons why she parents the way she does. 

What type of parenting would be helpful in this situation and WWSWD next?

a)Permissive Parenting Style- SW would state that what she has been doing is permissive parenting and it can be very effective in giving her daughter independence. SW would help the mother continue to teach her daughter independence.

b)Authoritative Parenting Style- SW would state that it's important for her daughter to have stability from her mother but to also have rules that she must follow.  The SW would explain to the mother that she can still encourage her daughter to be independent but standards and rules must be set while allowing the daughter to question them and actively take part in understanding the rules.

c)Authoritarian Parenting Style- SW would state that it is important to be a parent, not a friend. The SW would explain to the mother that standards and rules must be set and enforced without question from her daughter.

The correct answer would be (b). The Authoritative parent is the most effective as it allows the child to take part and understand the discipline rather than having full-time independence with no punishment (permissive) and/or being too overbearing/rigid (authoritarian).

Read more about parenting styles here