Use positive reinforcement instead of threats for your child’s misbehaviour, experts say – CTV
Dec. 17, 2024
If your child is riding the line between naughty and nice this holiday season, it may be tempting to use the impending threat of Santa withholding gifts as leverage to curb bad behaviour.
One in four parents of preschool-age children have used Santa or the threat of no gifts to address misbehaviour, according to a new C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital National Poll on Children’s Health released on Monday.
“It can be a challenge for parents to know the best ways to handle discipline issues, so we wanted to explore their approaches (to see) where they get resources from to help them make decisions about disciplining young children,” said Dr. Susan Woolford, Mott Poll codirector and pediatrician at the University of Michigan Health in Ann Arbor.
The Mott Poll, conducted in August, surveyed 725 parents who have at least one child aged one to five years old. The margin of error is plus or minus one to six percentage points.
