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One group will be young women who underwent unwanted pregnancies. The second will be driven by an unbalanced desire for its offspring to succeed. The last will be so out of touch it has no idea what its children are doing.

A study has come up with names for these three distinct styles of parenting: "obligatory", "hyper" and "out of date".

Ramjitti Institute director Amornwit Nakonthap says data show as many as 60,000 women aged 19 or younger become mothers each year.

Last year there were more than 68,000 of these "obligatory" mothers and within the next 10 years that number will be 700,000.

Obligatory mothers are unprepared for child raising and this can lead easily to drink¬ing, smoking, drugs and crime.

"Hyper" mothers are mostly middle class and educated. They account for 10 per cent to 15 per cent of all mothers.

Driven to "design" children's lives, they insist they spend time studying to get into the best schools and universities and jobs.

"Children who have been overstimulated and forcefed will burn out in their teens and may turn aggressive. These mothers are killing their kids with love.

The last group, "outofdate" mothers, make up between seven to eight of every 10, he says.

Most are either falling behind on technolo¬gy knowledge or work so hard they have little time for their children.

He warns that the coming decade will see a materialistic society "with plenty of vice". Mothers will have to "catch up with kids or else there will be severe social problems".

Young women need help to learn about contraception and the dangers of unwanted teenage pregnancies. Young mothers need help continuing their education, Amornwit says.

Hyper mothers need to ease up and allow children to enjoy their childhood a little.

But, most mothers need to be more "up to date", and spend more time with their sons and daughters. They need to gain their trust, too.

For its part the government must ensure educational equity and provide more "creative spaces" for youth.

National Institute for Child and Family Development chief Saireudee Worakitphokhathorn says the government has to look hard at how it can introduce positive policies for child and family development.