Beliefs, attitudes and practices regarding parents' care for their children have been changing over the past century, with new views being particularly reflected in the advice meted out to parents by professionals. This historical overview presents a broad-brush picture of some of the general trends and striking features of child rearing over the last century. The authors look at prevailing theories of children and childhood, and changes in understanding of child development over the period; outline some of the key societal shifts which affected family life and the parent role; and draw on these analyses in discussing some of the changes in beliefs, attitudes, and practices regarding parents' care for their children over the century.