--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Parents who are cowed by temper tantrums…" description: "\"Parents who are cowed by temper tantrums and screaming defiance are only inviting more of the same. Young children become more cooperative with parents..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a24/sandra-scarr-23477_child_parents-who-are-cowed-by-temper-tantrums_2185911.jpg" --- # Parents who are cowed by temper tantrums and screaming… ![“Parents who are cowed by temper tantrums and screaming defiance are only inviting more of the same. Young children become more cooperative with parents who confidently assert the reasons for their demands and enforce reasonable rules. Even if there are a few rough spots, relationships between…” quote by Sandra Scarr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a24/sandra-scarr-23477_child_parents-who-are-cowed-by-temper-tantrums_2185911.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a24/sandra-scarr-23477_child_parents-who-are-cowed-by-temper-tantrums_2185911.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a24/sandra-scarr-23477_child_parents-who-are-cowed-by-temper-tantrums_2185911.jpg) > “Parents who are cowed by temper tantrums and screaming defiance are only inviting more of the same. Young children become more cooperative with parents who confidently assert the reasons for their demands and enforce reasonable rules. Even if there are a few rough spots, relationships between parents and young children run more smoothly when the parent, rather than the child, is in control.” [Sandra Scarr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-scarr/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Children respond better when parents set clear, confident boundaries rather than yielding to outbursts. **In simple terms:** Firm, clear parenting leads to cooperation. Key Takeaway Set clear rules and enforce them calmly. Themes parenting authority communication Mood thoughtful pragmatic Type advice inspirational When to use this quote - disciplinary meetings - daily routines - conflict de‑escalation Key Concepts behavioral psychology boundaries confidence Questions to Reflect On - How can firmness be balanced with empathy? - When should flexibility be introduced? A Different Perspective Children may resist if rules feel too rigid. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Child](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/child/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Cooperatives](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cooperatives/) [Defiance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/defiance/) [Demand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/demand/) [Discipline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/discipline/) [Parent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parent/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) [Reason](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reason/) [Running](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/running/) [Tantrums](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tantrums/) [Temper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/temper/) [Temper tantrums](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/temper-tantrums/) [Young children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/young-children/) ## Related quotes > [My childhood was marked by seizures, which my family interpreted as temper tantrums.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sylvia-fraser/my-childhood-was-marked-by-seizures-which-my-family-interpreted-as/) [Sylvia Fraser](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sylvia-fraser/) > [Ellen had long ago stopped being embarrassed by temper tantrums. She flipped it and wore it like a badge of honor. A temper tantrum…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-scottoline/ellen-had-long-ago-stopped-being-embarrassed-by-temper-tantrums-she/) [Lisa Scottoline](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-scottoline/) > [“When two-year-olds are thwarted (like every three minutes), they have intense anger and temper tantrums. At this stage the child needs to take possession…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-bradshaw/when-two-year-olds-are-thwarted-like-every-three-minutes-they-have/) [John Bradshaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-bradshaw/) > [I had very bad temper tantrums. I was in more grammar schools than there are years of grammar school. I got kicked out of,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valee/i-had-very-bad-temper-tantrums-i-was-in-more-grammar-schools-than/) [Valee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valee/) > [“One did not win by throwing temper tantrums.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-godbersen/one-did-not-win-by-throwing-temper-tantrums/) [Anna Godbersen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-godbersen/) > [Wars and temper tantrums are the makeshifts of ignorance; regrets are illuminations come too late.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/wars-and-temper-tantrums-are-the-makeshifts-of-ignorance-regrets-are/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [The basic idea is that there is this group that, over the centuries, has learned to control reincarnation. John's character stumbles into that realization,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glen-morgan/the-basic-idea-is-that-there-is-this-group-that-over-the-centuries/) Glen Morgan > [You can control yourself if you really want to. I'll tell you how I know you can control yourself. If you were in a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joyce-meyer/you-can-control-yourself-if-you-really-want-to-i-ll-tell-you-how-i/) [Joyce Meyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joyce-meyer/) > [We are on the precipice of a crisis, a Constitutional crisis. The checks and balances, which have been at the core of this Republic,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/we-are-on-the-precipice-of-a-crisis-a-constitutional-crisis-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I'm not going to have temper tantrums anymore.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-mckenna/i-m-not-going-to-have-temper-tantrums-anymore/) [Megan McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-mckenna/) > [“Someday she'll get older, and the world will start having its way with her. She'll throw temper tantrums, she'll need therapy, she'll grow breasts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-tropper/someday-she-ll-get-older-and-the-world-will-start-having-its-way-with/) [Jonathan Tropper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-tropper/) > [For me, makeup is about being your best self. If I wake up in a foul mood and have to deal with temper tantrums…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-alba/for-me-makeup-is-about-being-your-best-self-if-i-wake-up-in-a-foul/) [Jessica Alba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jessica-alba/) > [Her elf is going to do just that,” he said, the red glow of the ever-after sun turning his hair auburn, almost as red…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-harrison/her-elf-is-going-to-do-just-that-he-said-the-red-glow-of-the-ever/) [Kim Harrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-harrison/) > [I have my own grown-up versions of temper tantrums, too. I have a hard time not getting hurt when my kids have meltdowns.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/busy-philipps/i-have-my-own-grown-up-versions-of-temper-tantrums-too-i-have-a-hard/) [Busy Philipps](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/busy-philipps/) > [This is real. This is not a phase. This is not a temper tantrum. The average American who I believe makes this country work…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/this-is-real-this-is-not-a-phase-this-is-not-a-temper-tantrum-the/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) ## More by Sandra Scarr > [Children need both latitude of expression and firmly enforced limits on their behaviors, in a blend that results in calm, patientmanagement. The key to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-scarr/children-need-both-latitude-of-expression-and-firmly-enforced-limits/) [Sandra Scarr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-scarr/) > [Parents sometimes think of newborns as helpless creatures, but in fact parents' behavior is much more under the infant's control than the reverse. Does…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-scarr/parents-sometimes-think-of-newborns-as-helpless-creatures-but-in-fact/) [Sandra Scarr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-scarr/) > [It is important for practical and psychological reasons to call any reasonably stable group that rears children a family… The advantage of this view…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-scarr/it-is-important-for-practical-and-psychological-reasons-to-call-any/) [Sandra Scarr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-scarr/) > [Babies learn most of what they know from interactions with their parents, but not of the formal, instructional variety. Babies learn from spontaneous, everyday…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-scarr/babies-learn-most-of-what-they-know-from-interactions-with-their/) [Sandra Scarr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-scarr/) > [We know that babies develop as well in nonmaternal as in maternal care, as long as the care is of good quality. 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The idea that children have feelings of any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-scarr/not-until-freud-s-writings-became-popular-did-descriptions-of-infants/) [Sandra Scarr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-scarr/) > [Each era invents its own child. Over the past 500 years, conceptions of the child changed gradually from an ill-formed adult who must be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-scarr/each-era-invents-its-own-child-over-the-past-500-years-conceptions-of/) [Sandra Scarr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-scarr/) > [Day care poses no risk for children, provided that it is high quality… Poor quality day care is risky for children everywhere… The cost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-scarr/day-care-poses-no-risk-for-children-provided-that-it-is-high-quality/) [Sandra Scarr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-scarr/) > [Parents ought to feel more comfortable about the care of their children than some experts would seem to permit. If children were so fragile…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-scarr/parents-ought-to-feel-more-comfortable-about-the-care-of-their/) [Sandra Scarr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-scarr/) > [Ideas about mothers have swung historically with the roles of women. When women were needed to work the fields or shops, experts claimed that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-scarr/ideas-about-mothers-have-swung-historically-with-the-roles-of-women/) [Sandra Scarr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-scarr/) > [Mothers have not always had the most important role in their children's upbringing, when they had other economic roles to play. Inpast centuries, fathers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-scarr/mothers-have-not-always-had-the-most-important-role-in-their-children/) [Sandra Scarr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-scarr/) > [A healthy newborn has been delivered in a more or less satisfying fashion. The baby is feeding well, has short nails and a clean…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-scarr/a-healthy-newborn-has-been-delivered-in-a-more-or-less-satisfying/) [Sandra Scarr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-scarr/) > [Children thrive in a variety of family forms; they develop normally with single parents, with unmarried parents, with multiple caretakers in a communal setting,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sandra-scarr/children-thrive-in-a-variety-of-family-forms-they-develop-normally/) [Sandra Scarr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-scarr/) [Explore all 26 Sandra Scarr quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sandra-scarr/) ## More Child quotes > [The thing about hitting kids is, think about if you were doing the same thing to another adult. 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