What does todays village to raise a child look like?

Today’s parents are reinventing what it means to rely on their “village” when it comes to raising a child, new research finds.According to a survey of 2,000 parents of children ages 0-6, 78% agree that the definition of a village— or their community and support system— is different today than when they were growing up.In fact, another 86% of parents say they have a different type of support system today than their own parents did. Growing up, respondents recall spending the most time with grandmothers (60%), grandfathers (41%), aunts (51%) and uncles (41%) as well as their parents’ best friend (38%).In total, they can remember an average of eight different people being regularly involved in their lives as children, and a majority (86%) are still in some contact with their childhood village.But today, parents rely on an average of seven different people, and fewer of them are relatives. Mothers (54%) and fathers (34%) still ranked at the top of the list, but today’s parents are more likely to lean on their friends (33%) or best friends (30%) than aunts or uncles (29%).Still, 29% of parents find it difficult to make new friends today.Their inner circle most often includes the friends they made after having children (24%).

Interestingly, parents are more likely to spend time with their childhood friends (15%) than they are with friends they made in adulthood before having children (14%), their teenage crew (9%) and even their college friends (6%).In fact, 83% say their child making a new friend results in building a friendship with their parents at least some of the time. Conducted by Talker Research on behalf of The Goddard School, the survey took a deep dive into the makeup of today’s villages and aimed to uncover what the modern-day version looks like. Four in five (81%) of all parents polled believe that it’s imperative to have a support system when it comes to raising their child, and another 43% believe parenting is more difficult today th...