One study found that kids’ self-control mirrors that of their parents, from money use to health care. But is it genetics or an example?
Is self-control inherited? Yes, at least in part. Research by the University of West Virginia (USA) has shown that the degree of self-control of an adolescent in different situations depends above all on the self-control skills of the parents. It’s unclear whether this is true hereditary transmission or whether kids simply learn to repeat behavior observed in their parents, but it’s likely that both factors contribute.
The study
The researchers looked at 213 adolescents and their parents and found that the ability to resist immediate temptations for long-term goals within the family unit was about the same.
Responsibility
For example, if mothers were disciplined at work, so were their children at school, and if fathers had good general self-control, children handled money responsibly.
The area in which there was the most correspondence, however, was health: it turns out that parents who eat healthily, sleep enough and exercise raise children who do the same.
