The difference between modern sources on childrearing and more traditional ones is fairly large in most areas. This is partly because some traditional views were based on erroneous information or childrearing trends that have since been displaced. However, some childrearing wisdom does remain the same from one generation to the next.
To identify the differences, I read an article from a popular sourceùTodayÆs Parentùand then interviewed my mother to compare what she had been taught with the information in the article. The article, with a prodigiously long title, ôMother knows less: of course grandma doesnÆt understand night waking. In her day, bedtime was a different story,ö was itself quite appropriately about the differences in parenting wisdom among the various generations. It presented the new concepts and contrasted them with traditional concepts of years past. For example, it stated that mothers sleeping close to their babies is a good thing; in fact, ôsleeping close to you alters your babyÆs sleep patternsö (Reichert, 46). It contrasts this idea with the notion in the 50Æs and 60Æs that what it terms ôco-sleepingö was ôaberrant, and definitely to be avoidedö (Reichert, 46). Furthermore, although co-sleeping, particularly in conjunction with breastfeeding, is now considered normal, it was not considered so then.
Another issue it addressed was infant position, stating that mothers were traditionally advised to put their babies to sleep on their stomachs to promote longer sleep and prevent choking. It acknowledges that while this does induce a deeper and longer sleep, new information suggests that stomach-sleeping can precipitate Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), so it is no longer advisable. Traditional mothers were advised by Dr. Spockùwho, it notes in a humorous toneùwas one of the more lenient authorities of the timeùto let their babies cry rather than picking them up, to prevent spoiling th...