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New book says strict Chinese parenting is better than Western ideas

New book says strict Chinese parenting is better than Western ideas

New memoir ‘Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mom’ suggests a more strict approach to parenting young children is more effective than ‘soft’ Western world styles

Liz Stansfield

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A new parenting book that looks at the differences between Chinese and Western parenting styles is causing controversy around the world.

Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mom, by Yale University professor Amy Chua, suggests strict parenting rules for young children used in Eastern countries are superior over more ‘soft’ Western ideas.

She suggests that while mums in the Western world might think they’re being strict with their children, they’re not, and merely give in to their children using a soft approach to parenting.

Amy, who is mum to two girls aged 14 and 18, claims to have brought up her children by strict ‘Chinese mother’ rules. And says her children were never allowed to:

Attend a sleepover
Have a playdate
Be in a school play
Complain about not being in a school play
Watch TV or play computer games
Choose their own extracurricular activities
Get any grade less than an A
Not be the No. 1 student in every subject except gym and drama
Play any instrument other than the piano or violin
Not play the piano or violin

While Amy acknowledges her methods may seem a little overzealous, and admits she does regret some of her actions, like calling her daughter ‘garbage’ when she had been rude to her, she insists her methods get results.

“I wish I hadn't been so harsh with them at times, but if I had it to do all over again, I think I would basically do the same thing, with small adjustments,” said Amy. “I think there are many aspects of western parenting that some Asian parents find horrifying.”

We bet you’ve got some thoughts on this one ladies….

Authors

Liz Stansfield