A new study has revealed that if you want to make your children neurotic, helicopter parenting is the way to go.
The research from UC Berkeley and California State University shows that helicopter parenting may not be the best strategy for raising independent kids, but a healthy measure of clinginess and overprotectiveness could actually be advantageous when rearing dogs and cats.
A Web-based survey of more than 1,000 pet owners nationwide analyzed the key personality traits and nurturing styles of people who identified as a "cat person," a "dog person," "both" or "neither."
Surprisingly perhaps, those who expressed the greatest affection for their pets also rated among the most conscientious and neurotic, suggesting that the qualities that make for overbearing parents might work better for our domesticated canine and feline companions, who tend to require lifelong parenting.
Co-author Mikel Delgado said that the fact that higher levels of neuroticism are associated with affection and anxious attachment suggests that people who score higher on that dimension may have high levels of affection and dependence on their pets, which may be a good thing for pets.
This is the first U.S. study to incorporate the principles of human attachment theory, which assesses the bond between parents and children or between romantic partners, with pet owners' personality types, including whether they identify as a "dog person" or "cat person."
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Co-author Gretchen Reevy added that it is also the first to find a positive correlation between neuroticism, anxious attachment and the care of and affection for pets.
Reevy said that they will investigate further whether greater affection for and greater anxious attachment to one's pet, and neuroticism, are associated with better care and understanding of the pet's needs.
The study is published in the Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science.