A mum-of-two who refuses to punish her children faced huge backlash after her appearance on This Morning.
Bea Marshell appeared on the show to advocate ‘Yes Parenting', saying that she would never punish her two sons Peep, 11, and Jos, 10 if they were misbehaving.
Instead, she said would ask them to think about how their behaviour affects those around them.
This comes after the news that parents from New Mexico punished their teenage son by making him stay in a tent for a month for stealing an MP3 player.
Bea, who separated her from her children's father in 2013, told presenters Eamon Holmes and Ruth Langsford: ‘If my child exhibits unwanted behavior, whether knowing or unknowing, I will say to them "I felt cross or sad or frustrated by what you did. I want you to respect our home, and me, would you be willing to explain to me why you did that."' She admitted she wouldn't shout at her children or take away privileges and if they didn't want to explain why they misbehaved, ‘that is fine'.
Bea's said her ‘Yes Parenting' style comes from her belief that children should not fear their parents. She said: ‘There is a difference between having authority and having power over someone, fear is a contracting emotion.'
‘Any form of punishment puts a parent in a position of power over their child.'
‘The child then becomes powerless and you are using fear and control to manage your child's behaviour.'
However, many viewers were outraged by Bea's open and controversial parenting style, leading to Eamon to admit: 'Almost universally no-one agrees with you.'
Shelly White said: "Well.. my 9 yo just told me kids should be punished so they learn right from wrong @itvthismorning #childdiscipline #frommouthofbabes
However, there were some who did agree with Bea's discipline-free parenting, with Darly Hemsell tweeting: 'My daughter is 8 and we have never disciplined her. We get down to her level and explain why she did something wrong.'
Others found it an interesting approach and a new way of looking at the relationship between parent and child. Hayler parker said: 'Wow she's just opened my eyes #childDiscipline @itvthismorning comparing parent-child to adult-adult relationships
What is ‘Yes Parenting'?
‘Yes Parenting' is a style of parenting that doesn't use discipline and aims to say ‘yes' to anything a child asks for. It is based on the belief that it encourages children to make their own decisions and be independent from an early age.
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