The Grim Reason Your Kid Keeps Saying 'Good Boy' – And How To Respond When They Do

<div><img src="https://img.huffingtonpost.com/asset/68109fd31700001a0041df6b.jpg?ops=scalefit_630_noupscale" alt="" data-caption="" data-credit-link-back="" data-credit="Peter Dazeley via Getty Images" /></div><div class="content-list-component text"><p>There’s a trend emerging among kids where they ask someone to do them a favour and when that person kindly does it for them, they’ll respond: “good boy” (or “good girl”).</p><p>According to <a href="https://www.parents.com/why-kids-saying-good-boy-in-school-is-not-a-good-thing-11720407" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Parents</a>, the mocking trend emerged on TikTok when someone asked a police officer for their badge number and name. When the officer provided the information, the person responded with “good boy” – and so a quietly hideous trend was born. </p><p>Unfortunately, the phrase has seeped into classrooms – with teachers saying they’re witnessing children saying it to each other, and <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@teamvuong/video/7470741671752305963" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">even to them. </a></p><p dir="ltr"><span style="color:#000000"><a href="https://fionayassin.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Fiona Yassin</a>, family psychotherapist, and founder and clinical director of <a href="https://thewaveclinic.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Wave Clinic, </a>told HuffPost UK the trend ”</span><span style="color:#000000">is a particularly provocative one”, as its purpose is often to “evoke shame, anger or an inflammatory response”.</span></p><h2 dir="ltr"><strong>Why is it problemati