Are gel iPhone cases protective?

I recently got a iPhone 4S and I LOVE it but my mom is really paranoid about it cracking so she got me this big grey and black case. It seems very durable but it's really ugly and big, I can't even put it in my pocket. She won't buy me another case (although I ordered a Stitch case on amazon, but it's going to get here around Halloween) so I asked my friend if I can borrow one of her many iPhone cases. So I came home today with my friend's gel case on my phone and my mom got mad. Are gel cases not very protective? Maybe it's just that the phone is new and that's why my mom is paranoid but honestly I don't think I will drop this phone. I have had a Nintendo DS lite, a iPod touch, and 4 phones in my lifetime. Not once have I ever dropped any of those.

My iPod touch has a gel case, end it works great. Mine has a "lip" over the screen too, so the screen won't crack. I've dropped it face down a couple times and hasn't broken!

Actually no, it is just not worth the money, you should just spend more for a shockproof, waterproof, and etc.proof case, they last longer and also have a pretty long warranty. I would prefer LifeProof http://www.lifeproof.com/