According to a research led by Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, parents who regularly read with their children are less likely to engage in harsh parenting and their children are less likely to be disruptive or hyperactive. Previous studies have shown that shared reading prepares preschoolers for school by building and reinforcing their literacy and emotional skills, but the Rutgers study is the first to show the effects of shared reading on parenting.
The Rutgers research has revealed some specific benefits from shared reading, such as improved parent-child bond and reduced hyperactivity and attention (ADHF) problems in kids. For example, frequently shared reading at age one was linked to less harsh parenting at age three, while frequently shared reading at age three was related to less harsh parenting at age five. Moreover, mothers (and probably fathers) who read often with their kids reported less disruptive issues with them, which may explain the reduction in harsh parenting.
Picture: Mother and daughter reading, by Francis Coates Jones (Wikimedia Commons, w/Effects)
