Saturday, November 02, 2013

Can Putting Your Child Before Yourself Make You a Happier Person?

Caring about your child's well-being is not the same as pushing your child to excel in order for the sake of status. And it's not the same as using your child to satisfy your selfish drive for power over others.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/10/131031175659.htm

Oct. 31, 2013 — While popular media often depicts highly-involved parents negatively as "helicopter parents" or "tiger moms, how does placing one's children at the center of family life really affect parental well-being? New research published in Social Psychological and Personality Science finds that parents who prioritize their children's well-being over their own are not only happier, but also derive more meaning in life from their child-rearing responsibilities.

"These findings stand in contrast to claims in the popular media that prioritizing children's well-being undermines parents' well-being," the researchers wrote.

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"These findings suggest that the more care and attention people give to others, the more happiness and meaning they experience," the authors wrote. "From this perspective, the more invested parents are in their children's well-being -- that is, the more 'child centric' parents are -- the more happiness and meaning they will derive from parenting."

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