Anissa Anderson Orr writes about the pluses and minuses of helicopter and free range parenting.

“Both styles have benefits for child rearing,” says Michael Assel, PhD, an assistant professor of pediatrics at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) Medical School. Assel and his colleagues at the Children’s Learning Institute have studied the effect of early maternal interaction on children’s later achievement. He calls the conflict between helicopter and free-range parenting a “false dichotomy.” Most parents don’t adhere strictly to one style or the other, and they shouldn’t. “In reality, parents need to be both a free-range parent and a helicopter parent, but at different times.” http://www.uthealthleader.org/index/...6-8405477a8fac

Parenting from the middle:

While there’s little research on the long-term effects of either parenting method, “There is strong evidence that warm and nurturing parents have a positive effect on cognitive, social and language development,” Assel says.

What does that mean for parents? Try to find a balance between the two philosophies, say Assel and Love, and remember that each child is different. One child may need more freedom and another child may need more guidance. Achieving that balance takes time and patience from both helicopter and free-range parents. Parents who tend to do everything for their children may struggle with letting them accomplish tasks by themselves. Parents who are more free-range may have to occasionally push their children to do something important. It isn’t easy.

“One rule of parenting I always go by is to ask yourself, “What’s the hardest thing I can do right now?” Assel says. “If it seems hard, you are probably headed in the right direction.”

My parents were helicopters for the most part. My Dad, however, often would assign a task to be done with little or no instruction on how to accomplish it. The strict structure impeded my social development and ability to make decisions. Then again, there was a lot of trauma in my upbringing.