Positive Parenting: Encourage or Praise?

We live in a culture where a blue ribbon, a gold star, a trophy, or at minimum an enthusiastic “good job!” has become commonplace—and even expected—when children participate in an activity, regardless of their effort or outcome. Many feel these practices are important to build a child’s self-esteem and are harmless, but in fact, they are neither.

While each of these events are not individually harmful, and are sometimes perfectly appropriate, the practice of continually praising or overpraising a child can be. The problem with praise is that children begin to expect constant acknowledgement and conversely are alarmed when they don’t get it. They come to rely on external praise rather than develop internal motivation or confidence in their emerging abilities. They stop doing things because they should or they can, and instead do them for the recognition.

Further, according to Carol Dweck, Ph.D., a professor at Columbia University, children who come to rely on praise take fewer risks, because they are unwilling to lose their praiseworthy status. When children seek praise (consciously or unconsciously), they tend to avoid anything they won’t get “right,” which is unfortunate because mistakes, trial and error, and risk-taking are critical elements of any learning process.

The impact of praise on a child starts early. In a study facilitated by Dr. Dweck, children as young as fourteen months had begun developing opinions about themselves and their abilities based on the praise their parents gave them. As children age, if they only define themselves by good grades, winning, or anytime they receive praise, they’ll feel less competent or worthy when these things are absent, e.g., the real world.

So what should we do instead? Offer encouragement.

As an alternative to praising a child’s end result or the child themselves, we should offer encouragement for their efforts and attitudes. Encouragement can be inspirational and motivating—a gentle, supportive nudge that helps children meet important goals—instead of self-defining and limiting.

And when we do praise children, it should be genuine: praise that is specific, e.g., “That was very kind of you to clean up your toys without being reminded,” rather than generic, e.g., “You are wonderful,” and praise focused on behavior, e.g., “You came up with a very creative solution,” rather than the person, e.g., “You are so smart.”

In Dr. Dweck’s study, children who received encouragement were more likely to believe their intelligence could change and they could do better if they tried hard, whereas children who were praised felt their intelligence was fixed and were already, even in the toddler years, avoiding experiences perceived to be challenging.

Examples of Praise Versus Encouragement

Generic or Person-Centered Praise

• You are always so beautiful
• Good job
• What a smart kid you are
• What a pretty picture
• You sure are strong
• You are so organized
• I am so proud of you

Encouragement or Genuine Praise

• I like the combination of patterns you chose to wear today.
• You really stuck with that—your hard work paid off.
• I can tell you’re working hard on reading because you finished a longer book.
• The colors you chose for that sunset are unique.
• That was the first time you’ve jumped rope without stumbling.
• I appreciate the way you organized the shelf—it makes it easier to find everything.
•  You look proud of yourself! You really proved you can do it.

Sure—encouragement may not roll off the tongue as easily, but it is worth the effort. Here are a few additional benefits to encouraging children rather than praising them.

What Words of Encouragement Do for Your Child’s Development

• Recognize and foster continual growth and effort
• Lessen the chance of comparisons or competition
• Foster independence with the understanding that intrinsic abilities can achieve needs and wants
• Emphasize effort, progress, and improvement, rather than focusing on results
• Recognize contribution rather than completion, or quality over quantity
• Promote perseverance, rather than giving up, if initial results aren’t as good as expected
• Inspire self-concept, as opposed to comparisons.
• Offer preparation for real-world challenges, where simply showing up won’t earn recognition
• Build determination and confidence, e.g., “I have the ability to do many things if I work hard,” as opposed to building false self-esteem, e.g., “I am so smart. I can do anything.”
• Inspire self-sufficiency.

Children who receive encouragement or genuine praise are also more resilient. Because they are focused on their effort and believe they can change their circumstances through determination or learning, they are not as shaken by adversity.

Children who have been praised for a fixed personal characteristic, such as their intelligence or good looks, are confused by setbacks and view them as a personal reflection rather than a growth opportunity. In addition, children who receive stickers or high-fives for doing mundane tasks like putting their shoes on begin to expect praise when praise isn’t called for, and take it personally when it doesn’t come (which will inevitably happen as they age). The praise becomes more important than the achievement.

Of course, it is okay to express pride in your child; it is a natural way to demonstrate love and support. But if self-confidence and development are the goals, encouragement is a much more useful strategy.  When our children are on their own and faced with a challenge, we know it won’t help them to think, “Why can’t I do this? I should be smart enough,” but it will serve them well to think, “This is tough, but with effort I can probably figure it out.”

As parents, we can do a lot in these younger years to build that kind of thinking from the start. There is no need to take drastic steps and snatch the soccer participation trophy out of your child’s hands, but some reflective thoughts and words of encouragement on your child’s effort and growth throughout will ensure their joy comes from their developing abilities and confidence in their own skills rather than the shiny award sitting on the shelf.

Source: https://www.brighthorizons.com