Chores Teach Responsibility

"The value of chores," explains Bradley Hospital's Rowland Barrett, PhD, chief psychologist, "is in the lessons learned from accomplishing them: a sense of pride, self-respect, and the experience of being connected to others who depend on the child's contribution."

Parents begin almost unconsciously by assigning children tasks such as washing their own faces, brushing their teeth, progressing to the responsibilities of completing their homework on time and attending school. Children usually accept these personal responsibilities readily, but household chores can be more difficult to delegate successfully.

Barrett suggests that parents assign chores to children at a young age and also advises them not to pay their children for contributing. "It will not hurt them," he adds. "The purpose is to teach children about their social responsibilities to their family and to equip them for the many social responsibilities that will confront them in society as teenagers and adults."

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