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hubie [soylentnews.org] writes:

Modern day parenting pressures and expectations are leading to the death knell for children enjoying spontaneous play [essex.ac.uk]:

Whilst parents have always felt some responsibility for their children's development, the heightened intensity of parenting in recent years now means parents are expected to spend more time exhaustively watching, noticing and responding to their children's desires and behaviours.

This, the research suggests, is leaving less time for children to play independently where they learn for themselves the risks and dangers of outdoor play.

[...] "Until around the 1990s, parents were not expected to endlessly entertain and monitor their children in the same way they are today, so children had greater freedom to play independently," explained the study's author Dr John Day. "But since those children have become parents themselves, society has changed so there is a heightened feeling of responsibility for their children's development.

"One aspect of the problem is increased fears around stranger danger and more traffic on the roads which means opportunities for children to be physically active through spontaneous play have become limited."

So, today's youngsters are spending less time playing together away from adult care and more time under parental supervision and participating in structured health-focused physical activity settings such as holiday clubs.

[...] Growing concerns around child health meant many parents born after the late 1960s, who started parenting in the early 1990s, felt as though they should intervene to make sure their children were active, which restricted the possibility for more spontaneous forms of play.

"Society today positions parents as the sole engineers in their children's development which represents an unrealistic burden that brings with it unjust pressure and expectation," added Dr Day.To help address this trend, Dr Day says there needs to be a culture shift where health policy makers ensure children are encouraged to learn about the risks of physically active play, independent of adult supervision."Parenting is no longer simply an aspect of who someone is but a role one is expected to extensively perform. Parents and their children are trapped together in this scenario and so we need policymakers to recognise this and work with parents and children to change this for future generations," he said.

Journal Reference:
John Day, The intensification of parenting and generational fracturing of spontaneous physical activity from childhood play in the United Kingdom, Sociology of Health & Illness, 2023. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-9566.13701 [doi.org]

Original Submission