Millennials are really confident that they're great parents


Millennials have been accused of being self-absorbed many times over — but sometimes a dose or two of confidence can be healthy. According to a new survey by the Pew Research Center, a whole 57 percent of moms and 43 percent of dads between the ages of 18 and 30 think they're doing a "very good job" raising their children. Gen X and Boomer parents are less confident by comparison, with only 48 percent of Gen X moms and 41 percent of Boomer moms feeling the same. Dads fared worse — Boomer fathers were only 37 percent confident they were doing a very good job of raising their kids.
Specifically, Millennials seem to believe that they are both stricter and more loving. Given a choice, for example, they tell Pew they are over-protective rather than offering too much freedom. And unlike their forbears, they stick to their guns rather than giving in too quickly. They also believe they err on the side of not criticizing their kids."Millennial moms and dads were more likely to say they sometimes praise their kids too much," says Juliana Menasce Horowitz, one of the authors of the report. "And that it's extremely important to them for their kids to grow up to be ambitious." [Time]
Pew's study followed 1,800 parents and adjusted for the age of children, since parents of surly teens always seem to show a drop in confidence.
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Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.
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