Rethinking parenting: A function-based framework for understanding caregiving across contexts

Traditional parenting research has relied on typological models that categorize behaviors into rigid styles (e.g., authoritative and permissive), often neglecting the intentions and contextual factors that give meaning to caregiving. These models, based on samples lacking diversity, have contributed to measurement challenges, cultural misinterpretations, and deficit-based portrayals of marginalized families. In this article, we introduce a function-based framework organizing parenting according to its primary caregiving goals: affective (emotional connection), behavioral (structure and guidance), and cultural (value and identity transmission). By centering purpose and context and distinguishing caregiver intentions from realized interactional function, this framework reframes parenting as a dynamic, goal-directed process responsive to developmental needs and sociocultural realities. We argue that this approach allows for more inclusive, precise, and ecologically valid assessments of parenting across diverse families. We review the limitations of legacy frameworks, outline the theoretical foundations of the function-based framework, and present implications for research design, measurement, intervention, and policy. We conclude by advocating for a science of parenting that recognizes variation as adaptation and centers the lived goals of families navigating diverse social, structural, and cultural environments. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).