Developing Gratitude and Filial Piety: The Role of Chores

Abstract

Whilst decades of research in the global north has identified authoritative parenting as producing the better child outcomes, and there is a growing amount of literature from countries such as China, suggesting the contrary: that authoritarian parenting produces desirable outcomes. However, the links between authoritarian parenting and the development of filial piety in China appear to have been disrupted by the incursion of values from the global north, and the actions of Chinese parents themselves responding to the Chinese one-child policy. This has created a situation in China where there are now major concerns about children's lack of filial piety: an issue which has major implications in a nation that depends on familial care rather than state provided welfare. In this paper, we examine issues around parenting and the development of gratitude and filial piety. We suggest that it is important for children to learn how to behave in ways that demonstrate gratitude and filial piety and that competence in performing appropriate behaviours is the pre-requisite to internalizing the associated values. We suggest that engaging in family chores from an early age is one strategy parents can use that will help their children develop the appropriate behavioural repertoire.