Many new parents wonder if they know what they're doing.
A new study suggests there may be grounds for these worries. A national survey by Zero to Three, a nonprofit clearinghouse for information about child development, has found what it calls serious gaps in many people's basic knowledge of raising children. The group paints a portrait of parents and prospective parents who have unrealistic expectations of what children can do, and of how best to help them meet their potential. About 60 percent of parents still spank, even though they concede the punishment is ineffective. Others seemed unaware of how tuned in infants are to their surroundings, including conflict and adults' emotional problems.