Parents sometimes do things for their children what they can physically do for themselves. For example, most preschool-age children can dress themselves, brush their hair, and put their own toys away. To do these things regularly for children teaches them to feel they deserve such service all the time. Few children learn to show appreciation for these efforts. Instead, they often become impossible to satisfy, thinking there is no limit to what they can demand. Parents who feel exhausted and unappreciated may find that they have made their children dependent on them.
Some parents who may be very good at allowing their children to be independent may not be good at setting clear and firm limits for behaviour. Children easily discover rules that can be broken if their protest is long and loud enough. Parents allow this to happen for different reasons. Some parents just want to avoid the hassle of a conflict with their children. It's easier for them to let the rules slide than to deal with the fuss. For other parents, it is hard to refuse their children anything, because they don't want them to be unhappy. These parents think "unhappy children" equals "bad parents." Still others are afraid their angry children will not love them.