Title: Manipulative Child Behavior - 6 Tips For Parents | Empowering Parents
Headings: Manipulative Child Behavior? My Kids Are “Too Smart for Their Own Good”
Manipulative Child Behavior? My Kids Are “Too Smart for Their Own Good”
By Debbie Pincus, MS LMHC
“My kids are driving me crazy! They are so manipulative I can’t stand it!”
The Cycle of Manipulation, Control and Defiance
1. Recognize Manipulative Behaviors
2. Know Your Triggers
3. Define Yourself and Your Parenting Principles
4. Approach the Bench
5. Believe in Your Child
6. Soothe Yourself
About Debbie Pincus, MS LMHC
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Content: It’s important to understand first that it’s natural for kids to “want what they want and try to get it at all costs.” It’s also natural for us as parents to get frustrated and tired, and to give in to these behaviors sometimes — or perhaps more often than we’d like to admit! Parents have busy lives and lots of stressors – we can only take so much, after all. As aggravating as it is for you, for your child, finding ingenious ways to try and get what she wants or avoid what she doesn’t want to do is a way for her to exercise influence in a world run by adults. ( It doesn’t mean you have to give in, but it’s important to realize that it’s developmentally appropriate.) Your child doesn’t have adult power yet – most kids can’t make major decisions like choosing their neighborhood or school, for example. Having initiative, drive and passion are positives, even though it doesn’t always feel that way as a parent. But keep in mind that these traits can actually be a force for good if you can help your child to use it properly, balance it with self-restraint and respect boundaries. Look at it this way: your kid’s job is to make demands, to communicate his desires and to try to get them met by hook or by crook.