Snowplow Parenting Taking Toll On Children By Not Allowing Kids To Deal With Obstacles, Experts Say

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PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- You've heard of helicopter and free-range parents, but what about snowplow parenting? It's the latest trend exposed by the college admissions scandal that swept up several Hollywood stars, and experts say it's taking a toll on children.

As the helicopter parents hover, a new piece of heavy-duty machinery has been introduced as a term to describe a method of child-rearing: the snowplow.

The snowplow parent is one who plows down every obstacle in their child's life so that he or she does not have to be challenged by it.

"I totally disagree with that. I think the child should have to deal with obstacles on their own and figure out the way of the world," one woman said.

The term was coined last year, but reemerged last week as 50 wealthy parents, including Hollywood stars, were charged in a college admissions scam where cash, not talent or hard work, allegedly earned their children admittance to elite universities.

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"Parents want to ask themselves, 'Do I want to parent at the same intensity, my child's entire life?'" clinical psychologist Dr. Valerie Braunstein said.

According to Dr. Braunstein. the goal in parenting is to gradually step back as a child grows older, providing tools along the way that will help the child learn to remove obstacles on their own.

"It's often the parent's own anxiety, right? So it comes from a good place, the parent is anxious and uncomfortable seeing their child anxious and uncomfortable," Dr. Braunstein said.

But she says constant intervention will have long-term consequences.

"They are sending a message to the child that the child can't handle it, that they have to be rescued," Dr. Braunstein said.

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"I think all parents want to try and solve their kids' problems, but I think at think in this world today, kids have to understand that they need to do it on their own," one man said.

A lesson in adulthood that this son appreciates.

"My parents let me fall flat where I needed to and I learned from those experiences," he said.

Dr. Braunstein added that preventing a child from encountering physical danger is one area that parents should never back down from.