Does the Supernanny Teach Good Parenting Skills?

There is no question that ABC's show "Supernanny" is a hit (including Fox's copycat show Nanny 911), but the question remains if the advice "Supernanny" Jo Frost gives is truly good advice. Some of the staples of Frost's methods include the "naughty step" or in certain instances the naughty chair or corner which is in essence the equivalent of a time out for unruly children. She also encourages parents to never hit or spank their children and emphasizes that yelling at your children is ineffective. While these two bits of advice are generally agreed upon as ineffective parenting by most leading parenting experts the overall method that supernanny promotes is not.

The experts do see some positive messages that the show sends. In addition to discouraging corporal punishment they also agree that encouraging parents to engage and play with their children and deterring parents from setting unrealistic high expectations for their children are appropriate parenting techniques. In cases were there are several children, mediation between two sparing siblings is also an effective measure to take. However, the overall authoritan approach used in all the supernanny episodes is one that modern day child developmental psychologists do not support.

The authoritan approach consists of controlling children's behavior with punishments and rewards. This superficial parenting approach is criticized because it does not attempt to look below the surface at the underlying cause of the behavior. Also, every family is given the exact same treatment in each episode. This approach has been aptly named "behaviorism" and appeals to many Americans because of our desire for "quick fixes" to problems. Childcare experts in the UK (where Frost hails from) criticize the show for both the invasion of children's privacy and this quick fix approach. Gina Ford a maternity nurse and parenting author states,"Through no choice of their own the children have ended up "staring" in unedifying family dramas, and are pilloried for fault which all to often, lie with their parents, " she says, " I dread to think of the long term damage to some of these children."

While you may think that this is a dramatic statement, Dr. Aletha Solter a Swiss/American developmental psychologist that once worked with the famous Dr. Jean Piaget at the University of Geneva concurs with this statement. She believes that time outs don't address the causes of inappropriate behavior and says that you need to explain to your children how they should act and why they should act this way. She also believes that times outs undermines children's intrinsic motivation and that this authoritan approach teaches children to look for immediate gratification as adults. In fact, the National Association for The Education of Young Children includes time outs in a list of harmful disciplinary measures along with physical punishment, criticizing, blaming, and shaming. They believe time outs encourage children to suppress their feelings and this may lead to harmful consequences in adulthood. The teenage form of time outs "grounding" they believe only leads to resentment, resistance, and deceit among teens. While parents may feel that time outs are an alternative to spanking or yelling, this is not considered to be a desirable alternative.

While the show may seem informative and heart warming you must remember at the end of the day that it is a television show and ultimately simply entertainment. Parenting is not a skill that should be taught over a television show and parents are urged to seek out various sources in which to sharpen and improve their methods of parenting.