Issues on Parenting: Counselling for Positive Nurturing

Abstract

Globally, general observations and trends as reported in news shows a great paradigm shift 
from how parents from generation x (1960’s) and y (1990’s) raised their children and the 
challenges confronting the twenty first century parents today. Parenting is a duty, which should 
be an intentional and a deliberate practice that parents activate into action on daily basis to 
nurture their children for healthy growth and development, with focus to basic human needs 
including physical, psychological, social, and Spiritual needs. This study interrogates some 
issues in parenting and also illustrates some parenting challenges and concerns that parents 
face while raising their children. They include economic issues, behavioural issues, changing 
times, increasing demands for survival of the home and family, among others. The study also 
incorporates some counselling blocks that could be adopted by the parents in this digital age 
for effective disciplines and behaviour management, communication, academic and social 
development, mental health and safety, balancing work and the family, and dealing with 
complex family dynamics and generational gap challenges, time management, availability for 
parent-child-bond in the digital age. In order to promote enduring positive responsiveness from 
parents to children, it is recommended that parents should be intentional and deliberate in the 
attention given to their children in early ages and as preteens, teenagers, and youths.