Page 39 - Silver Lakes October Issue 2023

TODAY’S CHILD

THE BRAT FACTOR

No one wants to raise a spoilt child. Would you know if your child is a brat?

By Suzette Weideman

here are several ways the latest gentler parents, moms and dads let their • They have difficulty discerning between
generation of kids stands out. They sweet little darlings get the upper hand. their needs and wants, and have little
Tare more technologically driven and It is time for the pendulum to swing. You respect for the needs and wants of others
appear to be interested in materialism – can be gentle and still afford your children • They become bored easily, show very
even young children have bought into the the opportunity to grow into responsible, little patience and tend to express anger
renewed focus on image and appearance. contributing members of society. physically by hitting, biting or yelling
• They cause you, the parent, to avoid public
Following in mom and dad’s proverbial How to identify a spoilt brat places and to always have bribes ready
footsteps, they ask to wear Nikes, not just You may ask whether your children are • They act up even when you’re engaging in
takkies. How cute is it to see a two-year-old spoilt. If they show any of the following something, so you have difficulty finishing
branding ‘Just Do It’ footwear? However, patterns of behaviour after the age of two a story, a telephone conversation or a task
when your rapidly growing pre-teen is or three (according to www.pediatrics.
used to being spoilt this way, it becomes an about.com), they may have difficulty with If these behaviour patterns sound familiar,
expensive exercise. Requests soon change discipline and may, indeed, be spoilt: you can consider your child or children to be
to demands. The result? No one wants to spoilt.
be seen in public with an angry child as • They have frequent temper tantrums,
it tarnishes a carefully constructed public make demands and cannot accept it Spoilt children are not happy children. They
image. when things do not go their way don’t learn to handle disappointment and
• They get frustrated easily, fight, protest often negate their own role in a situation.
When parents have minimal authority and and say “no” to most requests They find it difficult to adjust to the demands
children continually get their own way by • They have difficulty following rules or do of their environment and will keep on seeking
acting out, the children become spoilt. But not respond to limits set by caregivers extrinsic motivation for tasks that have to be
contrary to popular belief, children aren’t • They frequently attempt to control other performed. When asked how she motivates
spoilt because they whine; they are spoilt children and adults, and have trouble herself to study, a teenager responded in this
if whining consistently gets them what they sharing or even playing with other flippant way: “I don’t. My parents buy me
want. Sometimes, in an effort to be kinder, children because of bossiness stuff and give me money.”

INTRAMUROS OCTOBER 2023 | 37