ACADEMIC RESEARCH IN MODERN SCIENCE
International scientific-online conference
163
THE MANIFESTATION OF INFANTILISM IN PARENT-CHILD
RELATIONSHIPS
Karyagdiev Sherzod Shuxrat ogli
Teacher of the Department of “Psychology and
pedagogy” of the ISFT institute
Tashkent, Uzbekistan
Email:sherzodqoryogdiev@gmail.com
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15687435
Annotation:
Parental infantilism is a very rare, atypical and still poorly
studied phenomenon for modern society, and is presented as a complex
systemic formation. The article discusses the socio-psychological factors of the
emergence of infantilism in the institution of modern parenting based on the
analysis of materials from scientific publications that study the psychological
characteristics of infantile parents and their psychological problems.
Key words
: interpersonal relationships, psychological dysfunction,
demographic factors, socialization, psychological investment.
In the era of transformation of values and traditions taking place in the
world, one of the main tasks that modern science should solve is to study the
role of the family in children's behavioral deviations. It is in the family that the
foundation of the child's social experience, value system, character and
intelligence is laid, and individual psychological characteristics are formed, on
the basis of which a model of interaction between the individual and the outside
world is formed. At a time when socio-economic changes are accelerating,
changes in family structures, the composition and structure of the family and
family life, lifestyle, forms of social control and participation, as well as the
impact of fundamentally new social norms of behavior on the educational
process have become widespread. These aspects create the basis for the
sustainable development of such negative aspects as indifference and
irresponsibility of parents in the system of family relations.In the next analysis,
we can see that, having studied the socio-psychological factors that cause
aggression in adolescents, the relationship between the adolescent's parents, as
well as the relationship between the parents and their adolescent child, can also
have an impact, as confirmed by the results of our research [1].
The methodological basis of the psychology of family relations is the theory
of freedom, equality and dignity. The ideology of the psychology of family
relations is the well-being of the family, the strengthening and development of
the family way of life, equal opportunities for personal development, the priority
of the interests of the child. Theoretical and practical interest in the problem of
ACADEMIC RESEARCH IN MODERN SCIENCE
International scientific-online conference
164
the family exists as long as human society exists, and this is not surprising. The
family is a system of human social activity, one of the main institutions of
society. It is in motion, changing not only under the influence of socio-political
conditions, but also due to the internal processes of its development [2]. The
family is the object of research of many social sciences, such as philosophy,
history, ethnography, sociology, demography, psychology of family relations.
Each of these sciences seeks to give its own definition of the family and therefore
develops its own approaches to the study of this problem. According to A.I.
Antonov, the family is “an association of people based on personal property and
family activity, connected with parental-marriage-kinship relations, which
combine the satisfaction of personal needs and the performance of social
functions by birth, an institution for the maintenance and socialization of
children”. Psychology, studying the family as a socio-psychological group, pays
attention to the interpersonal relationships of its members, their interaction in
various social and family situations, the organization of family life and the
factors of the stability of the family as a small group. At the same time, the family
is interpreted as a social group united by a set of interpersonal relationships
formed in joint activities, corresponding to the norms and values of a particular
society [5].
Infantilism among parents began to develop rapidly in the 20th century,
especially in its second half. This was undoubtedly influenced by technical
progress, the transformation of the family institution, family values, and the
socio-psychological role of men and women in family relations. The
interpretation of the concept of “infantilism” and the study of its manifestation
in parental behavior seem to the authors to be a pressing issue characterizing
one of the modern trends in development. In everyday practice, this term is
often used as an assessment of a particular phenomenon or behavior and has a
negative connotation [3]. Such a negative assessment is appropriate for the
world of parents. Every child is “immature” and strives to become a full-fledged
adult. Despite the possible problems and difficulties of adult life, the position of
adults seems attractive to the child. Indeed, achieving maturity and elevation is
one of the promising goals of human development. Profound changes taking
place in many areas of life lead to a change in the value-semantic relations of
parents, to the setting of goals that are easier and faster to achieve. The modern
social situation is characterized by an increase in the volume and intensity of
information flows, socio-economic changes and various crises. The contradictory
picture of the future, the uncertainty of tomorrow scares future parents, as if
ACADEMIC RESEARCH IN MODERN SCIENCE
International scientific-online conference
165
calling them to remain in “childhood”, where there were no problems, life was
stable and reliable. However, having lost the value of growing up, humanity loses
the meaning of its existence, denies self-reproduction and is heading towards a
decrease in the population and the end of humanity In the analysis of the
questionnaire «Parent-child relationship» by A.Ya. Varga and V.V. Stolin, 90
parents of our adolescent subjects who participated in our study participated,
and they were analyzed based on the class section. Accordingly, we can see that
there was no significant difference between the results of parents of adolescent
students on the acceptance scale (H=1.569, p≥0.456). The average rank index of
parents of 5th grade students is 40.90, the average rank index of parents of 7th
grade students is 46.43, and the average rank index of parents of 9th grade
students is 49.17. Furthermore, the acceptance of adolescent children by parents
of 9th grade students is lower than that of parents of other grades. This is
because parents believe that since their children are on the verge of «stepping
into independent life,» they use a method of satisfying their behavior, desires,
and needs with an eye on their future field of activity in order to prevent them
from straying into various strange paths.
Traditionally, the development of the individual is influenced by three
global factors: heredity, environment and upbringing. Numerous scientific
experiments conducted by nature on humans prove that the child is able to
perfectly adapt to the animal environment, but the further it is, the faster it loses
its ability to develop personally. Consequently, it is the environment that is the
leading factor influencing the properties and qualities of future generations. The
transmitter of the environment, everything that is nature, all the blessings
created by people, is culture in a broad sense [7].
In the course of the above theoretical analysis, we can divide the
pedagogical conditions for the development of infantilism in parents into the
following categories:
1) the lack of collective education and the low influence of teachers,
psychologists and the educational environment in general on the development
of the individual;
2) a specific style of freedom pedagogy, which provokes the development of
egoism;
3) in the absence of psychological and pedagogical support for family
relationships, the responsibility for upbringing is assigned only to the family;
3) deformation of the model of family relations against the background of a
decrease in the birth rate, changes in gender roles and family values.
ACADEMIC RESEARCH IN MODERN SCIENCE
International scientific-online conference
166
An alarming symptom of infantilism is the lack of desire to develop.
Analyzing the work of Dan Keeley and many other researchers, it becomes clear
that there are six main signs of infantilism in parents:
1) irresponsible behavior;
2) psychological discomfort;
3) loneliness and hidden fears;
4) confusion of gender roles;
5) narcissism;
6) gender stereotypes [6].
The loss of the value of adulthood undermines the development goals of
humanity and the stability of the population. For a modern young person, the
main components of youth remain stable at the level of adolescence. The leading
activity is the same as in adolescence - mastering the operational-technical side,
professional orientation and acquiring professional skills. Another prerequisite
for the implementation of development is communication, which has become
mediated directly through digital and virtual devices - computers, mobile
devices, social networks, file-sharing services. Mediated social interaction leads
to the equalization of the importance of certain behavioral patterns and gaps in
their formation. There is a tendency to replace real communication with virtual.
All other things being equal, modern youth prefer signs of attention (for
example, congratulations on a birthday or other significant event) on social
networks to direct communication. Virtual communication is characterized by
superficial connections and imitation of emotions. As a result, this leads to a
violation of the influence of the social factor on development and maturation.
Infantilism remains a “natural” model of behavior, supported by the components
of development for both a young person and a biological adult [8].
To form stable psychological boundaries, responsibility and activity of the
individual, there must be an effective communication system between the
individual, family and society. For the effective functioning of the education
system as the main channel for the transmission of cultural meanings, dialogical
interaction between family education, the state education system and the real
socio-cultural context of state education of the younger generation should be
ensured. Based on theoretical analyses, the study of the manifestation of
infantilism in parents reveals the possibility of psychocorrection and
psychoprophylaxis of infantilism by focusing on their family path, marital
hierarchy, and the “psychological wounds” they received when passing a certain
age stage in ontogenesis. As modern preventive measures to prevent the
ACADEMIC RESEARCH IN MODERN SCIENCE
International scientific-online conference
167
development of infantilism among young people on the verge of marriage, that
is, future parents, it is worth noting the following:
1) the formation of a pedagogical and social environment that stimulates
the development of social activity and social intelligence of young people;
2) the restoration of collective and labor education methods that form
personal development, independence, and enhance the influence of a peer group
in the educational process;
3) the provision of educational and psychological and pedagogical support
of society to families (especially single-parent families) in diagnosing and
preventing infantilism in the practice of family upbringing;
4) create conditions for real self-realization here and now, in order to
prevent young people from entering mythological worlds (the world of virtual
games, digital reconstructions of communication, drugs, illusions, artificially
created subcultures);
5) develop young people's aspirations for independence (including financial
independence), first of all, self-confidence, their capabilities and abilities;
6) support at the state and societal levels the culture of family relations,
large families, the decisive role and responsibility of the father as a regulator of
family relations and the rules of upbringing;
7) develop and introduce into the educational process methods of
combating digital safety and Internet addiction for the development of a creative
personality;
8) development of educational programs on self-knowledge, self-
development, self-management and self-education technologies in the youth
environment and their introduction into the educational process;
9) implementation of preventive work aimed at combating the growing
tendency of teachers and psychologists in youth communities to blame parents
and seek "childhood injuries" to explain the manifestation of their own infantile
behavior.
10) development and implementation of programs and projects to increase
the social activity of young people in order to develop the younger generation in
harmony with nature and society, to form a sense of responsibility and creative
self-awareness of a modern person [7].
Literature:
1.
Войскунский А.Е., Солдатова Г.У. Эпидемия одиночества в цифровом
обществе: хики комори как культурно-психологический феномен //
Консультативная психология и психотера пия. 2019. Т. 27. № 3 (105). С. 22–
43.
ACADEMIC RESEARCH IN MODERN SCIENCE
International scientific-online conference
168
2.
Бакулина А.С. Феномен кидалт, или «новых взрослых», в
современном мире // Актуаль ные вопросы социально-психологических
исследований: сб. науч. и учеб.-метод. ст. / ред. сост. А.М. Тютченко, О.С.
Фисенко. М.: Перо, 2015. С. 28–36.
3.
Серегина А.А. Социально-психологические условия преодоления
инфантилизма у без работной молодежи : автореферат дис. ... кандидата
психологических наук : 19.00.05 / Рос. гос. соц. ун-т. – Москва, 2006. – 25 с.
4.
Сабельникова Е. В. Инфантилизм: теоретический конструкт и
операционализация // Образование и наука. – 2016. – № 3. – С. 89-105.
5.
Mikhailova O.B., Gutvajn N. Growing infantilism in modern adolescents
and young people: symptoms and causes // Вестник Российского
университета дружбы народов. Серия: Психология и педагогика. 2022. Т.
19. № 1. С. 39–53. http://doi.org/10.22363/2313-1683- 2022-19-1-39-53.
6.
Mikhailova O.В., Kudinov S.I., Marin Jerez К.G. Value-motivational
characteristics of inno vativeness as prospects for successful self-fulfillment //
Mediterranean Journal of Social Sciences. 2015. Vol. 6. No. 3S2. Pp. 105–112.
7.
Апраксина
Н.Д.
Преодоление
учебно-профессионального
инфантилизма студентов в процессе социокультурного развития в вузе :
автореферат дис. ... кандидата педагогических наук : 13.00.08 / Апраксина
Нина Дмитриевна; [Место защиты: Моск. гос. ун-т культуры и искусств]. –
Москва, 2008. – 23 с.
