Screen-Time Will Be Limited, My Kids Will Never Sleep In My Bed And I Will Not Shout At Them… Study Reveals The 20 Most Hilarious Preconceptions Parents Had Before Becoming A Mum Or Dad

New research of parents reveals as many as 85 percent think back and laugh out loud about the sort of parent, they thought they would be.

A further 81 percent claim it is simply impossible to know just how hard being a parent is until you’ve had kids yourself.

Top of the list of preconceptions, with 47 percent of the vote, was the intention to ALWAYS limit screen time.

And 33 percent of the 2,000 British parents polled thought they would never bribe their children to be good, no matter how naughty they were being, only to find themselves giving in and doing deals with their kids to keep them at bay.

Other pre-baby vows

Other pre-baby vows that ended up being broken included never raising their voice to their child (39 percent), never using a tablet as a babysitter (34 percent), never bribing their kids to be good (33 percent), reading to them every single night (32 percent) and never allowing their little ones to sleep in their bed (29 percent).

While a quarter (25 percent) of those surveyed by pre-school brand, Play-Doh, had been convinced they would never give in to pester power – only to cave in repeatedly once their children were old enough to whine and beg.

In fact, more than two thirds (67 percent) of those polled said there was often overwhelming pressure to be a ‘perfect’ parent, which left them feeling like a failure – with 72 percent saying social media is to blame.

Pressure to be a ‘perfect’ parent

Further factors that pile on the pressure include other parents (46 percent), family members (40 percent), friends who don’t have kids (34 percent), internet forums with conflicting advice (27 percent), and the host of parenting ‘experts’ available on all platforms (22 percent) – with 41% of parents having received unsolicited / unrequested parenting advice from others.

In response to the research, and in a bid to lighten the pressure on parents and caregivers, the Play-Doh brand has launched its new Parenting is Messy campaign, in a bid to celebrate the honest, unspoken truths of parenting and has called on some recognisable UK parents to contribute to its first ever book for parents – Notes on Messy Parenting.

The study also found that 81 percent of UK parents said having kids was the biggest learning curve of their lives. And an incredible 92 percent admit that they sometimes feel they are ‘winging it’ as parents – despite the wealth of parenting advice that exists.

Nicola Fox-Haggarty, Commercial Director for Hasbro UK & Ireland, said: “Our research reveals the expectations vs. reality of parenting – and how many of the preconceptions we have about family life turn out to be completely wrong.

“As a brand that embraces mess and imagination and dislikes instructions, Parenting is Messy is all about celebrating the less polished moments in people’s lives as parents. With pressure to be perfect so high, there’s no better time to relieve some of this and embrace the messy side of parenting, and life more generally!”

“Our Notes on Messy Parenting book is available to download for free from today, and features tales of parenting fails, worries and messy mishaps from a number of well-known contributors, so mums and dads out there know that they’re not alone!”

The study also revealed the top tips UK parents would give to people who were planning to have kids, with ‘there will be hard days but it’s worth it’ (68 percent), ‘don’t feel embarrassed if your child has a melt down in public as its normal (62 percent), and ‘you’ll miss these days when your kids are older’ (51 percent) all coming high in the list.

The 20 Most Hilarious Preconceptions Of Parenting, As Voted By Parents

1. Screen time will be limited 47%
2. I won’t shout at my child 39%
3. I’ll never use a tablet as a babysitter 34%
4. I will never bribe my children 33%
5. I’ll read to them every night   32%
6. My kids will never sleep in my bed 29%
7. I will never say “because I said so” 29%
8. My kids will never throw tantrums in public 28%
9. Establishing a good bedtime routine will be easy 28%
10. My kids will have good manners at all times 28%
11. I won’t give in to pester power 25%
12. I’ll be okay with my child making a mess with their toys 25%
13. I’ll never let them eat crisps/snacks in the car 24%
14. Parenting isn’t as hard as people say 23%
15. I’ll be okay with my child making a mess painting 23%
16. My kids will be presentable at all times 22%
17. Getting my kids up in the morning will be easy 21%
18. I won’t be a competitive parent 17%
19. I will never boast about my kids on social media 15%
20. My kids will be sporty 15%