by Alice Lavreigne

Created on: June 22, 2009

Getting children to do chores around the house can be a chore in itself, one the parent must endure. What child wants to give up time to play with his friends so he can clean his room or dust the furniture or empty the dishwasher? However, if some sort of incentive is added, monetary or not, the child is oftentimes glad to do the chores, making life easier on everyone involved.

And these bribes don't even need to be in the form of money: plenty of parents let their children stay up later if they've done all their chores. Some parents buy books for their child when the child has completed tasks that were assigned to him, which not only makes the child more likely to complete the tasks, it also furthers the child's education, which is never a bad thing.

Some people, though, are completely against bribing children, saying that parents are not bribed to do their work, so why should the children be? The first thing I would like to point out is the gross differences in the maturities between parents and children, even though I'm sure that goes without saying. The parents have learned the reasons to do chores around the house: cleaning needs to be done so the house doesn't smell; dishes need to be washed so there are more dishes cleaned for the next meal. Asking a child to connect these incidences is a little extreme. The inability to see why he must do a certain thing frustrates the child and makes him less likely to do the task-less likely, actually, to even remember being assigned the task.

Another thing I would like to point out is that people are bribed to do certain tasks for their entire lives. If one pleases one's boss, one is more likely to receive a promotion. If one dresses in socially acceptable clothes, one is more likely to find a mate. And that's not even mentioning that almost every job in the real world is rewarded with a salary or with some sort of recompense for one's time, because otherwise, people wouldn't do the jobs. If bribing children to do chores is bad, then isn't receiving a salary for any work just as bad?

Okay, but the parents need the money to keep the household running and to buy things necessary for living. Children don't need to pay for food, clothing, or shelter, so why should they earn money as well?

Entertainment is another necessary facet of life. If a child is buying toys or books or other things to keep himself happy, isn't that just the same as spending half of one's paycheck on concert tickets or a meal at a fancy restaurant or anything else? If adults are allowed to buy things sheerly for entertainment purchases, it only follows that children are allowed to as well.

There is no reason for children not to be bribed to complete tasks, when adults are bribed as well. Bribery is merely the way the system works, as intrinsic as flattery and other slightly less-than palatable things. Bribery, whether one likes it or not, does make things run more smoothly for all involved parties.

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