Thai Families Confront Teens in Expanded Parenting Roles
Recent discussions among Thai families highlight a growing challenge: teenagers taking on parenting duties for younger siblings. A segment from a well-known podcast on caregiving illustrated a parent coping with two teens acting as disciplinarians for a four-year-old. Psychologists warn that parentification can affect both the older children and the younger one, with implications for households across Thailand.
Parentification occurs when an older sibling gains genuine parental authority, typically when parents are overwhelmed or age gaps are large. Data summarized by major health institutes in the United States show that while sibling bonds can be positive, crossing developmental boundaries may create problems for everyone involved. In Thailand, where multi-generational homes are common and older children are often asked to help, such dynamics can escalate quickly. Culturally, deference to elder siblings is woven into language and daily life, but when teens begin setting rules, guiding discipline, or serving as emotional confidants for parents, experts warn that boundaries are shifting. A broad overview of parentification notes that routine chores and caregiving are acceptable to a point, but the emotional burden placed on teenagers can be harmful.