The following comes from a Sept. 11 story on CBS Atlanta.
A new study finds that the happiest parents are those who have four or more kids.
According to The Daily Signal, a study conducted by Australia’s Edith Cowan University found parents had the most life satisfaction with larger families.
“[The parents] usually say they always wanted a large family, it was planned that way, and it was a lifestyle they’d chosen,” study author Dr. Bronwyn Harman said, according to The Daily Signal.
Harman spent five years interviewing hundreds of parents from different family makeups and based her findings on resilience, social support, self-esteem and life satisfaction.
“What is important for kids are things like consistency, boundaries and [to] know that they are loved, no matter what,” Harman explained, The Daily Signal reports.
Harman initially believed parents with more children would be less happy, but her research concluded that the joy parents get from their children balances out the chaotic family nature than that of a smaller family.
The study also revealed that children of larger families are more independent at a younger age and always have friends.
I do believe that parents can be equally happy regardless of the number of kids. Their happiness depends on the rapport of the entire family and how they deal with the issues that come their way.
I’m not in contrast with this post. Just stating my opinion.
What is on the bear’s head?
When I was a child in the 1940’s and 1950’s, virtually all Catholic families, and a fair number of Protestant, Mormon and farm families, had lots of childen. My mother, one of 7 children, moved back to her folks’ big Victorian house, as did all her sisters and their children, and sister-in-law, for the duration of WW II. Not only was it practical, but it was great fun, mutually supportive, conferred countless benefits, and all of us were tremendously enriched for having spent difficult but wonderful years together in the company of one another. I always wanted lots of children and a big Victorian house to try to replicate those days!