Ann Masten, Ph.D., Regents Professor and Irving B. Harris Professor of Child Development at the University of Minnesota’s Institute of Child Development, has been studying resilience for four decades. Her research focuses on competence, risk, and resilience in development with the goal of informing practices and policies that help children facing adversity prepare for learning and life.
Her recent research in Minnesota has focused on school success in homeless and other disadvantaged mobile children, including protective processes like parenting and self-regulation skills.
Below, Masten discusses the definition of resilience and how you can help your child overcome life’s ups and downs.
What is resilience and how does it help children succeed?
Resilience is the capacity to overcome serious threats to development and go on to lead a successful life. Resilience can also apply to any system, such as a family, a community, or the economy.
Resilience of individuals depends on resilience of other systems they interact with. In the case of children, the younger the child is, the more dependent they are on the adults who are caring for them.
What are three things a parent can do to promote resilience in their child?
- Nurture a secure base and network of relationships in the family and beyond with caring and capable people, including yourself.
- Remember you are modeling stress management for your children, including problem-solving, controlling emotions, and getting help when it is needed.
- Provide opportunities for children to experience smaller challenges so they gain skills and confidence to tackle the big ones later in life.
