Study: Kids appreciate parents at 22

• Tweet

LONDON, Jan. 19 (UPI) -- A British market research firm said a survey suggests children begin to appreciate their parents when they reach the age of 22.

Research firm www.onepoll.com said its online survey of 5,000 families suggests the 22nd year of life is the most common for people to begin appreciating their mothers and fathers, The Daily Mail reported Monday.

"Young children look up to their parents, absorbing everything they say and emulating their behavior," a spokesman for the research firm said. "But by the time they reach their teens, they are learning to develop as individuals, which means they naturally push against everything their parents are trying to teach them, and test the boundaries at every opportunity."

"Teenagers are headstrong, emotional and independent, and at this point mum and dad become uncool, stifling and overprotective," he said. "But when kids leave home and start to fend for themselves, they no longer have to conform to their parent's ways and rebel against their suggested habits."