Why are so many affluent youths troubled?

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Answer: Despite their advanced education and great material wealth, affluent parents—those in prestigious and high-paying occupations—too often fail to engage in family interaction and parenting that promote favorable development. In several studies, researchers tracked the adjustment of youths growing up in wealthy suburbs. By seventh grade, many showed serious problems that worsened in high school. Their school grades were poor, and they were more likely than youths in general to engage in alcohol and drug use, to commit delinquent acts, and to report high levels of anxiety and depression. Compared with their better-adjusted counterparts, poorly adjusted affluent young people report less emotional closeness, less supervision, and fewer serious consequences for misbehaviors from their parents, who lead professionally and socially demanding lives. As a group, wealthy parents are nearly as physically and emotionally unavailable to their youngsters as parents coping with serious financial strain. At the same time, these parents often make excessive demands for achievement and are critical when their children perform less than perfectly. Adolescents whose parents value their accomplishments more than their character are more likely to have academic and emotional problems. For both affluent and low-SES youths, a simple routine—eating dinner with parents—is associated with a reduction in adjustment difficulties, even after many other aspects of parenting are controlled. Interventions that make wealthy parents aware of the high costs of a competitive lifestyle, weak involvement in children’s lives, and unrealistically high expectations are badly needed.