This is a VERY difficult question SF. That's mainly because for everyone the answer will be different and for every child it will be too. I know that with a friend of mine we're always debating about various things because of our different views, many of which have emerged with the different ways we've been brought up. Example: he has basically supported himself from the age of 14 and I'm still depending on my parents for almost everything. I often think he takes on far too much of a "whatever" attitude to things, even things which many would find important in life. For example, he thinks that kids'll learn on their own basically, and that everyone, especially once a teen or young adult, should just make their own choices and if they mess up, well then it's their fault and their parent is not to blame at all... I don't know... I find it disconnecting. I can't begin to imagine my life with out the constant guidance of my parents, but I also think that now that they're starting to let me go little by little, I'm finding it hard to detach... so it's a tricky balance to master I think, an I'm glad, so far, that my parents brought me up the way they did.