What kind of parent are you: jellyfish, dolphin, or an elephant?

A father playing with his young child outdoors, conveying warmth, safety, and emotional connection, is symbolic of elephant parenting style.

As a person who was recently verbally assaulted for clarifying that gentle, permissive, and authoritative parenting aren’t the same thing, I’m all too aware that parenting techniques are plentiful, confusing, and divisive. While it was a mistake on my part to discuss parental approaches with a drunk relative at a wedding reception, I’m sure that many others have found themselves in similar situations when the wine was flowing and conversation took a weird turn into the world of child rearing.

Parenting methods can be a touchy subject, and bringing up children is hard enough without trying to figure out what camp, cult, or you want to associate yourself with. Are you authoritarian? Or authoritative? Or permissive? Or a tiger?

While there were only about seventy-five techniques that I was previously aware of, I’ve recently found out that there are thousands more hiding in the inner folds of the internet. A treasure trove of lesser-known parenting approaches that are standing on the sidelines, waiting to go mainstream.

Jellyfish parents: a “loose” parenting technique

First up we have jellyfish parenting, which, surprisingly, doesn’t involve stinging your child with a tentacle or anyone peeing on anything. It is, instead, the term used to describe a “looser” parenting technique, where days remain relatively unscheduled - emphasising freedom and independence.

On the opposite side of authoritarians, it’s supposed to radiate warmth while allowing for inconsistent routines and letting children “explore their own passions”. Which, to me, just sounds like you’ve invited a hippie on an acid trip over to babysit and put a positive spin on the situation.

But I say this all with a whisper in case my wine-soaked relation is hiding somewhere, waiting in the shadows to jump out and shriek that this is also just another form of gentle parenting.

Dolphin parenting: firm, yet flexible

Staying in the marine life arena, we also have dolphin parenting - which, unfortunately, doesn’t involve communicating via clicks while bounding through open waters, but instead comes in the form of a firm, yet flexible approach.

A middle ground between the tiger and the jellyfish, the dolphin tries to guide its child while being playful and creative within a structure. If it didn’t sound so ridiculous I’d be inclined to say that appears to be quite a sensible outlook but I could never, in a sober state and with a straight face, declare myself to be a “dolphin parent”.

Source: https://www.standard.co.uk/lifestyle/parenting-types-gentle-authoritative-jellyfish-dolphin-elephant-b1229029.html