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by fristechill 1606 days ago
>One way of subtly enforcing cultural norms is a [...] a kind of playful teasing. This has also been observed in other indigenous circumpolar peoples, such as the Inuit, but not in mainstream Scandinavian cultures [...] ensure they never say something really hurtful, or bully the child

Yes, I think there's a benefit here but it's more important as an inoculation against bullying. It's the verbal equivalent of playing rough and tumble games on the lawn with Dad. Humans don't fight with each other physically nearly so much as they fight verbally.

That said I'm sceptical one can learn much about parenting from other cultures. Being a father or a mother is hard enough without trying to emulate other lineages and contexts. What we're trying to do, I think, is to include the best bits from our own childhoods, those things which brought value and hope and joy, and to de-emphasize the bad bits, or the seeming bad bits. A lot of the knowledge is tacit, which is why it's important to honour our own parents, otherwise it simply doesn't get transmitted.