Every time my middle kid plays sports or interacts with kids when I am around, he becomes a hopeless prick. However, if I am not around and he is interacting, playing, etc, he is an angel sent down from the heavens. I have to believe the controlling factor in this situation is me. He chooses to act out when I am around, but I have no idea why. This is the difficult parenting moment I suppose all parents face. Do I focus on disciplining the behavior out of him, or do I provide basic discipline and seek to understand the root of the issue?
I recognize the need to discipline unacceptable behavior. I also believe the behaviors children exhibit come as a result of imitation or as a way to express what words fail to do. I want to know why he acts like a prick around us parents and like a doll when with others. There has to be something there, Boundaries perhaps?