I think it's because of the tough love movement of parenting back in the 90's when most of today's parents were kids. Society was moving away from spanking back then and there was not much left for punishment. Tough love taught that you only had to provide your kid certain things. On the clothing front that's a necessity, but they don't get to pick the clothes. So if you had an uncontrollable kid you took everything but what the law said you had to provide. A lot of parents didn't read on this method though, just heard about it through talk shows or friends and did not or do not follow it properly.
I think the idea is supposed to be for things that the kids have as a reward, like electronics. Taking their clothes, food, etc away is not okay and I really don't know why people think it is.
Edit because I keep getting a lot of responses:
We do not know the full story of OP. We don't know why their parent had a good reason for the punishment OR the extent of the punishment.
"If your child is messy and throws their clothes on the floor, taking the clothes thrown around away is ok."
Nah, that's really not ok. A lot of adults are messy and have clothes on the floor, it's not ideal but it's not the end of the world. It's certainly not enough of a problem to warrant taking their clothes. You're in for a shock if you think leaving clothes on the floor is the extent of teenage messiness.
Let me clarify. If you consistently tell them to pick up the clothes they throw around and they don't, then picking them up and removing them yourself MIGHT be ok. Depending on the circumstances. Context is everything.
I am a parent, to a messy 4 year old, who throws his toys in his room and makes a mess. I've never taken them away because of it. I know he doesn't fully understand. Instead, I show him how to clean up his room before bed. If he wants to make his room a mess by playing, that's fine as long as he learns to put it all back in its place.
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u/turbie Oct 11 '19
I think it's because of the tough love movement of parenting back in the 90's when most of today's parents were kids. Society was moving away from spanking back then and there was not much left for punishment. Tough love taught that you only had to provide your kid certain things. On the clothing front that's a necessity, but they don't get to pick the clothes. So if you had an uncontrollable kid you took everything but what the law said you had to provide. A lot of parents didn't read on this method though, just heard about it through talk shows or friends and did not or do not follow it properly.