A new kind of nightmare 'snowplow' parent
is taking toll on children
前一陣的美國大學招生舞弊案暴露出了一批「掃雪機父母」，這種父母就像掃雪機一樣披荊斬棘，為孩子清除人生路上的一切障礙。但是專家表示，這種育兒方式其實很落後。
Move over, helicopter parents. "Snowplow parents" are the newest embodiment of a hyper-intensive parenting style that can include parents booking their adult children haircuts, texting their college kids to wake them up so they don't sleep through a test, and even calling their kids' employers.
「直升機父母」靠邊站，如今是「掃雪機父母」的天下了。採取這種高強度育兒方式的父母會給成年子女預約理髮，給上大學的孩子發簡訊叫他們起床去參加考試，甚至會給孩子的僱主打電話。
"Helicopter parenting, the practice of hovering anxiously near one's children, monitoring their every activity, is so 20th century," Claire Cain Miller and Jonah Engel Bromwich wrote in The New York Times. "Some affluent mothers and fathers now are more like snowplows: machines chugging ahead, clearing any obstacles in their child's path to success, so they don't have to encounter failure, frustration or lost opportunities."
克萊爾·凱恩·米勒和約拿·恩格爾·布羅米奇在《紐約時報》寫道：「焦慮地守在孩子身邊、監視孩子一舉一動的直升機父母已經過時了。如今一些富有的家長更像是掃雪機，轟隆隆地掃除孩子通往成功路上的所有障礙，讓孩子不必遭受失敗、挫折或喪失機會。」
Snowplow parents called out in the Times report include a mother who started a charity in her son's name to try to boost his chances of being accepted to the college of his choice. One set of parents spent years helping their daughter avoid foods with sauce, which she didn't like.
《紐約時報》關於掃雪機父母的報導中提到一位母親為了增加兒子被理想大學錄取的機會，以兒子的名義創辦了一個慈善機構。還有一對父母因為女兒不喜歡醬汁的味道，多年來從未讓她沾過添加醬汁的食物。
Once she got to college, she had problems with the food at her school cafeteria because it was all covered in sauce.
但是女兒上大學後就無法適應學校食堂的飯菜，因為所有飯菜都加了醬汁。
A recent poll by The New York Times and Morning Consult found that three-quarters of parents of children between the ages of 18 and 28 had made their children appointments for doctor visits or haircuts, and 11% said they would call their kid's boss if their child was having an issue at work, the Times reported.
據《紐約時報》報導，《紐約時報》和早晨諮詢公司近日開展的一項調查發現，子女年齡在18歲到28歲之間的父母有四分之三會為孩子預約看病或理髮，11%的父母表示，如果孩子工作出了狀況，他們會打電話給孩子的老闆。
Taken to the extreme, this type of parenting can be seen in the recent college admission scandal that saw dozens of affluent parents allegedly bribing standardized test score administrators and college coaches to ensure students would be admitted to elite universities, according to federal authorities.
前不久曝出的高校招生舞弊醜聞就是這種育兒方式的極端體現。據聯邦當局透露，數十名富有的家長賄賂標準化考試的管理人員和高校的教練，確保孩子能被頂尖大學錄取。
As INSIDER's Jacob Shamsian previously reported, wealthy parents try to get their children into top-tier colleges by making large donations to a school, such as paying for a building.
商業內幕網的雅各布·沙姆希安曾報導過，富有的家長會通過給學校捐錢蓋大樓等大額捐贈的方式來讓孩子進入頂尖大學。
Rich parents may have more time and money to devote to making sure their child doesn't ever encounter failure, but it's not only affluent parents practicing snowplow parenting.
富有的家長或許可以投入更多的時間和金錢，確保孩子一路坦途，但不是只有富人才會做掃雪機父母。
This super-intensive parenting has become the most popular way to raise children, regardless of income, education, or race, as Business Insider's Tanza Loudenback previously reported.
商業內幕網的坦扎·勞登巴克曾在報導中寫過，這種高強度的育兒方式已經成為最流行的育兒方式，不論收入、教育或種族。
A recent Cornell survey of 3,642 American parents about parenting style found that most parents said "the most hands-on and expensive choices were best," regardless of the parents' education, income, or race, Cain Miller reported in The New York Times.
凱恩·米勒在《紐約時報》的報導中說，康奈爾大學近日對3642名美國家長關於育兒方式的一項調查發現，無論教育、收入或種族，多數父母都表示「最實際最貴的選擇是最好的」。
hands-on[,hndz'ɑn]: adj. 親身實踐的，親自動手的
Madeline Levine, a psychologist and the author of "Teach Your Children Well: Why Values and Coping Skills Matter More Than Grades, Trophies or 'Fat Envelopes,'" told the Times having all of their problems preemptively solved by their parents can be "disabling" for children down the road.
曾寫過《教好你的小孩：為什麼價值和應對技巧比成績、獎盃和大學錄取通知書重要》一書的心理學家瑪德琳·萊文告訴《紐約時報》說，父母們預先給孩子解決所有問題會讓孩子未來失去解決問題的能力。
"Here are parents who have spent 18 years grooming their kids with what they perceive as advantages, but they're not," Dr. Levine said.
萊文博士說：「父母們花了18年時間讓孩子在各個方面都佔優勢，但他們所認為的這些優勢對孩子是有害的。」
Julie Lythcott-Haims, the former dean of freshmen at Stanford and the author of "How to Raise an Adult: Break Free of the Overparenting Trap and Prepare Your Kid for Success," told the Times that snowplow parenting is a backwards approach.
朱莉·裡斯科特-海姆斯曾任史丹福大學新生輔導主任，著有《如何養出一個成年人：拒絕過度教養的陷阱，讓孩子邁向成功》一書。她告訴《紐約時報》說，掃雪機育兒是一種落後的育兒方法。
"The point is to prepare the kid for the road, instead of preparing the road for the kid," she said.
她說：「關鍵在於讓孩子準備好上路，而不是準備好道路給孩子走。」
英文來源：商業內幕網
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