Parents usually aren’t inclined to keep score of all the mistakes they made with their children but ABC’s “The Parent Test” is willing to track all the slip-ups.
The competition show examines which out of all the featured parenting styles, like helicopter or disciplined parenting, is the most effective by putting these parents through tests and scrutinizing the results.
Who are the hosts of ‘The Parent Test’?
This show, inspired by the Australian series “Parental Guidance,” is hosted and moderated by Ali Wentworth, an actress who is married to “Good Morning America” anchor George Stephanopoulos, with whom she shares two children, and Dr. Adolph Brown, a clinical psychologist who has eight children of his own.
“I hope it starts much more of a national conversation about how we’re raising our kids,” Wentworth told Variety prior to the show’s release.
“I think what the pandemic did was throw all the old ideas about parenting out the window. Things like screens and social media, where you may have had a rule about it before the pandemic. But then, you wanted your kids to feel connected, so you let them stay on screens much longer than you would have otherwise. I also think the younger generations are experiencing a real mental health crisis that we haven’t even figured out yet, that we haven’t even collected the data on it yet,” she said.
How does ‘The Parent Test’ work?
A total of 12 families are competing to claim the title for executing the “most effective” parenting style. Four sets of parents sit in the front as clips of short tests roll.
These tests put the children and their guardians through different situations like a “yes day” or a stranger showing up, and asking the child to enter the home.
After watching the videos, the parents sitting in the back row comment and vote on the parenting style that worked the best through the series of tests. Then, it’s the back row’s turn under the spotlight.
What are ‘The Parent Test’ parenting styles?
There are a total of 12 parenting styles in the show, depicted through the many parents. Here is a list of all of them, according to Distractify.
- Disciplined: Focuses on creating a structure and consequence for bad behavior.
- Traditional: Puts emphasis on age-old transition and places parents as the authority figures.
- Intensive: Education is intensely at the forefront of this style.
- Natural: This relaxed parenting style focuses on outdoor time.
- Child-led: Taking cues from the children is at the center of this style.
- New age: Empowering children through love while prioritizing fun.
- Routine: To promote security, at the heart of this style is structure, per Romper.
- High achievement: Guiding and mentoring the child while expecting high results.
- Helicopter: This style allows parents to supervise and set boundaries at all times.
- Free range: Exploration and self-expression are at the heart of this style.
- Strict: Rules and discipline define this style.
- Negotiation: Parents tackle issues with the child through discussions and focus on the child’s well-being.
Is ‘The Parent Test’ worth watching?
The show is entertaining, as parents candidly argue with each other on hot-button topics like punishment through spanking and stranger danger. “The Parent Test” does offer a range of families, from different cultures and backgrounds, which makes it enjoyable and dynamic.
But, looking at the heart of the series, the short tests that the parents are put through don’t always give a complete picture of whether their style is most effective. Those videos only give a surface-level look into that household.
Plus, some parenting styles worked well for some tests and not well for others, like Juliette, the genius daughter from the Leong family, wanted to play by herself, and not with her parents on “Yes Day,” while another set of children, a product of natural parenting style, wanted their parents to put the phones away and have fun outside with them. As Decider noted, the exercise seems pointless.
Where to watch ‘The Parent Test’?
The show is available to stream on Hulu.