Should you force your teenager to tidy their room? 

With the summer holidays approaching, many parents are beginning to wonder exactly what they should expect their child to do around the house. 

Speaking to Newstalk Breakfast, psychotherapist Iseult White said it is always a question of picking your battles. 

“They’re probably going to spend quite a bit of time online and you’re going to say, ‘Go outside’ and they’re going to look at you like you have horns,” she said. 

“Expect all of those things but I also think you can expect your teenages to contribute to the household. 

“I would expect them to contribute to keeping common areas of the house tidy, to empty dishwashers, to contribute to tidying up but I’d also leave them their own privacy in their own room and honestly, if they want their room to be a mess, I’d just leave that with them - even if it’s a tip. 

“Don’t go in and pick up their laundry or do anything like that; they need to bring their own laundry down.”

Two baskets of dirty laundry in the washing room. Image: Ingrid Balabanova / Alamy Stock Photo

Ms White said it is important teenagers learn to do these things as they transition from childhood to independent adults. 

“In a couple of years, they’re going to be heading off on their summers, on their J-1 summers or travelling around with mates and they’re going to be renting places,” she said. 

“They need to have the skills to be able to live with other people their own age and that’s part of what they’re learning by contributing to keeping the house tidy. 

“But if their bedroom is a cesspit - why fight with them about it?” 

'Hang out together in real life'

Two things Ms White believes teenagers should be doing is learning how to cook for themselves and socialising with people in the real - as opposed to the virtual - world. 

“Maybe you can do some creative things like get them a bunch of pizza bases and grated cheese and get them to make pizzas at home and have a fun thing with a bunch of friends?” she said. 

“Try to make the house a place where they can actually hang out together in real life as opposed to always online. 

“Particularly for boys, so much of their social life is in online gaming and therefore they all need to be in their own houses with their headsets and gaming consoles.” 

According to a recent report by Studyclix, two-thirds of teenagers say their parents do not put any restrictions on the use of their phones. 

Main image: A teenage girl. Picture by: Alamy.com