Running head: MY PERSONAL PARADIGM 1

My Personal Paradigm

Jessalyn Westwood

Brigham Young University- Idaho

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My Personal Paradigm

Throughout my time as a student at Brigham Young University I have been introduced to

many different theories that have to do with families and children and many of them have had an

impact on my own personal paradigm when working with families. One that has had a huge

impact on me is parenting styles, especially the authoritative parenting style. Other theories that

have impacted me are the psychosocial theory of Erickson, the ideas of Locke that children are a

blank slate and the Waldorf preschool model. All of these theories and ideas have had a big

impact on my ideas, beliefs and the practices I want to use in the future while working with

children and families.

Parenting Style: Authoritative

One of the most successful and most common parenting styles is the Authoritative style.

This style according to the text found in a book, includes parents who are flexible but set limits,

encourage maturity but listen and forgive, and consider themselves guides for their children

(Berger, 2015). These types of parents tend to produce children that are more likely to be liked

by teachers and are overall more successful. These children have a better sense of self

appreciation, are generous, and happy (Berger, 2015). According to Leslie Reed children who

are parented in this style show, better self-control, higher self-esteem, higher academic

achievement, and express more happiness. (2015). This parenting style leads to successful

relationships between parent and child and help the child to grow in a safe and encouraging

environment.

According to Zarina Akhtar, parents who parent their children in the Authoritative style,

are very sensitive and involved in their child's activities; responsive to their needs; they

encourage verbal conversation and allow their children to question parental requests (2012).
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These types of parents are involved in their children’s daily activities and make an effort to be

present in their lives, without restricting them too much, they are willing to negotiate. Children

raised by these types of parents have good, healthy, and long-lasting relationships with their

parents in the future. My goal in my future is to be successful in using this parenting style with

my children, but also teach parents how to use this style in a successful way.

Psychosocial Theory

This theory is significant because Erikson does not just look at childhood when

developing developmental stages for the life. I think it is important to understand that

development is a continuous life process. According to Bornstein the, “individuals move from

one stage to another via the natural forces of maturation, with social and cultural forces shaping

how smoothly each stage is resolved. Each of these stages is therefore marked by a

developmental milestone or an emotional crisis that must be successfully resolved” (2018). I

think that it is important that we understand these stages in order to understand some of the

things a person in that stage may be going through and their mindsets when working with

families and children. I want to be able to use this theory to help myself better understand the

stages each of the individuals I work with may be in and how that would impact each of the other

individuals.

Locke and the Blank Slate

John Locke and his idea of the blank slate have also had a big impact on my ideas for

working with children and families in the future. Cebotarjovs states, “the child’s mind is like

white paper, void of all characters, without any ideas, the notion that later became popularly

known under the name of a blank slate or tabula rasa” (2016). This is an important idea to be

aware of but is not entirely an accurate theory to base everything off of. I like to believe that as
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parents and people who work with children, we have a big impact on the children in our lives

and need to be mindful of that. Children are very impressionable, and we have a responsibility to

teach them things that will benefit them in their lives, not things that will hurt them.

Waldorf Preschool Model

The Waldorf preschool model is something that I really agree with and want to see my

children go to a preschool that looks like a Waldorf classroom does on a regular basis. According

to Coppus, “Waldorf teaching methods are based on Anthroposophy, a philosophy that views

each child as a threefold being-spirit, soul and body-who unfolds in three developmental stages

on the way to adulthood” (2019) This method of teaching focuses on nature and that is

something that I am very passionate about and would like my children to be passionate about as

well. Coppus continues by stating, “Certain activities are central at Waldorf schools and include

art, music, gardening, and foreign languages (usually two in elementary grades). In the younger

grades, all subjects are introduced through artistic mediums” (2019) These are mediums and

ways in which I learn the best and I want to be able to share this with my children in the future.

Conclusion

The theories shared in this paper are some of the most important things that stuck out to

me throughout my studies so far in the child development major. I want to work in the future

with children and families on a regular basis and I feel that these theories will be most important

for me in my future work. The idea of parenting styles has had a profound impact on my own

thoughts, and I have researched how this has had an impact on children in foster care situations.

The psychosocial theory is significant because its stages go through all ages of life and all the

different situations. The blank slate idea is something that reminds me how much of an impact

we can have on children when we are working with them. The Waldorf preschool model includes
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a lot of things that I believe in and feel is a good method for teaching children. Overall, all of

these theories and methods create my personal paradigm and the things I hope to be able to carry

out as I work with children in the future.

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References

Akhtar, Z. (2012). The Effect of Parenting Style of Parents on the Attachment Styles of

Undergraduate Students. Language in India, 12(1), 555-566.

Berger, K. S. (2015). The developing person through childhood and adolescence. New York,

NY: Worth.

Bornstein, M. H. (2018). The SAGE Encyclopedia of Lifespan Human Development. Thousand

Oaks, California: SAGE Publications, Inc.

Cebotarjovs, M. (2016). The ideas of john locke and jean-jacques rousseau on language

Retrieved from https://byui.idm.oclc.org/login?

url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true& db=hus&AN=122948809&site=eds-

live

Coppus, S. A. (2019). Waldorf Schools. Salem Press Encyclopedia. Retrieved from

https://search-ebscohost- com.byui.idm.oclc.org/login.aspx?

direct=true&db=ers&AN=89164552&site=eds-live

Reed, L. (2015). Early Socialization. International Journal of Childbirth Education, 30(2), 31-34.

“2016 Children's Mental Health Report.” Child Mind Institute,

childmind.org/report/2016-childrens-mental-health-report/.