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Intensive Parenting: Does it Have the Desired Impact on Child Outcomes?
Journal of Child and Family Studies
Abstract
Although parental involvement is generally thought to be beneficial for children, it is unclear whether the intensive level of parenting that has become commonplace results in improved child outcomes. Intensive parenting may involve the desire to anticipate and solve children’s problems as well as to enroll them in numerous, structured activities that might enhance their physical, cognitive, and social abilities. We surveyed 241 parents to assess intensive parenting beliefs, anticipatory problem solving (APS), enrollment in structured activities, and developmental outcomes of their children ages 2–5. Using structural equation modeling, we found that intensive parenting beliefs predicted more APS, which predicted greater enrollment in creative and physical activities. However, enrollment in structured activities did not predict children’s developmental outcomes. Although parents may believe that expensive and time-consuming activities are the keys to ensuring their children’s health, happiness, and success, this study does not support this assumption.
... Overparenting is a term used to describe a parenting style characterized by excessive involvement of parents, who give too much advice, provide sometimes even unnecessary assistance and solve problems for their children (Segrin et al., 2012). Some studies have found that, among the parental behaviors that characterize overparenting, the one that best predict their children's psychosocial development is the anticipation and resolution of the problems their kids may encounter in their lives, so scholars suggest this behavior might be the most appropriate for measuring overparenting Schiffrin et al., 2015). Following these authors, we conceptualize overparenting as a form of parenting that is used by parents whose concern for the success, happiness, and wellbeing of their children leads them to solve problems for their kids, perhaps before they even develop, removing any perceived obstacles to those positive outcomes. ...
... From an empirical point of view, much of the overparenting research has been conducted with students in high school or college, showing that this parenting behavior can lead to high levels of narcissism, dependence on others and depression and low levels of selfefficacy in the students (Bradley-Geist and Olson-Buchanan, 2014;Odenweller et al., 2014;Schiffrin et al., 2015;Segrin et al., 2013). Nevertheless, these same parenting behaviors may be developmentally appropriate in other developmental periods. ...
... Nevertheless, these same parenting behaviors may be developmentally appropriate in other developmental periods. For example, in infants to 3-4 years old, benefits of high levels of parental assistance to their children in anticipating and solving problems include cognitive, physical and socioemotional development (Schiffrin et al., 2015). However, the influence is detrimental to children's development when parents are not able to reduce these monitoring behaviors as their children grow. ...
This study aims to investigate (a) the mediating role of overparenting between father’s educational level and children’s school problems, and (b) the joint moderating role of children’s gender and surgency in the indirect relationship between father’s educational level and school problems. Participants were 203 school children, 96 boys (47.3%) and 107 girls (52.7%), aged 7–8 years (M = 92.42 months, SD = 3.52). Fathers reported their educational level, age and employment status and their children’s gender and number of siblings, as well as their overparenting behaviors by Anticipatory Problem Solving (APS) scale. Teachers informed children’s school problems by the Behavior Assessment System for Children (BASC T-2). Parents together informed their children’s surgency levels by a subscale of Children’s Behavior Questionnaire (CBQ). Results showed that, in girls, the father’s educational level was negatively related to the child’s school problems via overparenting behaviors, controlling the number of siblings and father’s age and employment status. However, among boys, fathers’ overparenting protect their shy sons from the risk of a low educational level for school problems. These findings highlight the relevance of considering the gender and surgency to a better understanding of the effects of contextual factors on children’s outcomes.
... Over the past decades, parenting behaviors have intensified and perceived demands on parents, especially mothers, have increased (Faircloth, 2020;Gauthier et al., 2021;Schiffrin et al., 2015;Smyth & Craig, 2015). Gauthier et al. (2021) note that it is no longer sufficient to fulfill the child's basic needs; instead, it has become the parents' responsibility to promote their children's physical, cognitive, and socio-emotional development (Craig et al., 2014;Faircloth, 2020), often by investing significant amounts of time and financial resources. ...
... Through means such as increased cognitive stimulation, these practices are meant to foster children's development and to help them persist in competitive environments. Although concerted cultivation and intensive parenting practices have been previously found to be more prevalent among high SES parents (Attanasio et al., 2022;Bonke & Esping-Andersen, 2011;Fischer, 2022;Fox, 2006;Jaeger & Breen, 2016;Schiffrin et al., 2015), some recent evidence suggests that this relation may be growing weaker (Craig et al., 2014;. ...
... However, this only occurred if the parents started this habit before the child was four years old, and benefits were larger for early starters. Although Schiffrin et al. (2015) point out that there might be an 'optimal range' (p. 2322) of involvement and that further stimulation could even impede the child's development once a certain level of stimulation has been reached, this concern is more likely to apply in cases of too many structured activities. ...
Objective: This study investigates whether greater identification of mothers and fathers in different-sex couples with the stimulation dimension of intensive parenting promoted both parents' involvement in reading and benefited children's language development between ages 3 and 5 in the UK. In addition, we explore social class variations. Background: Our study tests the frequently assumed relationship of parenting beliefs about stimulation with language development, and contributes to our understanding of parenting practices and their implications for child development. Method: We draw on a large representative sample of young children from the UK Millennium Cohort Study (N = 8,071) and apply path analyses in the framework of structural equation models. Results: For mothers and fathers, stimulation beliefs partially mediated the relation between parental education and reading frequency. Mothers' and fathers' stimulation beliefs had positive effects on children’s language abilities, but their impact was small compared to the direct associations with parental education. Conclusion: While parental education emerges as a key determinant of children's language development, our study reveals the nuanced role of beliefs about stimulation within intensive parenting, prompting further investigation into the multifaceted nature of parental involvement.
... Parents-to-be receive many messages about what "good" or "successful" parenting entails (i.e., from family, friends, media), which may lead to the formation of "intensive" parenting beliefs (Craig et al., 2014). Intensive parenting beliefs are characterized narrowly prescribed definitions of ideal child-rearing, including beliefs that parenting should be inherently rewarding, parents are responsible for providing the best stimulation (e.g., learning opportunities) for children, parenting should be very challenging, parents are responsible for providing a child-centered family structure (e.g., be the center of attention), and that mothers are more important to children's development than fathers Schiffrin et al., 2015). Maternal essentialism is a domain of intensive parenting comprising beliefs that mothers are more competent, important, and essential to the development of a child compared to fathers Rizzo et al., 2013;Schiffrin et al., 2015). ...
... Intensive parenting beliefs are characterized narrowly prescribed definitions of ideal child-rearing, including beliefs that parenting should be inherently rewarding, parents are responsible for providing the best stimulation (e.g., learning opportunities) for children, parenting should be very challenging, parents are responsible for providing a child-centered family structure (e.g., be the center of attention), and that mothers are more important to children's development than fathers Schiffrin et al., 2015). Maternal essentialism is a domain of intensive parenting comprising beliefs that mothers are more competent, important, and essential to the development of a child compared to fathers Rizzo et al., 2013;Schiffrin et al., 2015). Maternal essentialism is a strict belief that mothers should be responsible for more childcare because they have more inherent potential to provide quality care for children. ...
... Questions focus on parenting ideologies broadly, thus making it an appropriate measure to use prior to the birth of a child when a parent would be thinking about parenting principles, but not engaging in any parenting behaviors yet. The IPAQ has been used in studies with parents and nonparents (Rizzo et al., 2013;Schiffrin et al., 2015), including men and women (Schiffrin et al., 2014). The maternal essentialism 8-item subscale sum was used to measure fathers' maternal essentialism beliefs (e.g., "Although fathers are important, ultimately children need mothers more"). ...
The transition to parenthood is an exciting, yet stressful, time during which trajectories of infant outcomes, parent health, and coparenting dynamics are established. New parents often receive messaging about what “successful” parenting entails. Expectant parents may adopt rigid beliefs about parenting roles, including views that mothers are more important and “know best.” New fathers who view their parenting role as less essential may be at risk for low levels of parenting self-efficacy. This brief report examines changes in self-reports of maternal essentialism beliefs and parenting self-efficacy in first-time fathers. A community sample of first-time fathers, N = 66, completed self-report online questionnaires at the 3rd trimester and 3 months postpartum. Dependent samples t-tests were conducted to evaluate changes in maternal essentialism beliefs and parenting self-efficacy across the transition to parenthood. Bivariate correlations and multiple linear regression analyses were conducted to evaluate relations between maternal essentialism and parenting self-efficacy within and across time-points. Fathers’ essentialist beliefs and parenting self-efficacy increased across the transition to parenthood. We found negative, cross-sectional associations between fathers’ maternal essentialist beliefs and parenting self-efficacy at both time points. These results underscore the importance of assessing fathers’ beliefs about parenting and parent roles as they transition to fatherhood.
... Moreover, an intensive parenting attitude can affect maternal behavior, especially to preschoolers. Schiffrin et al. (2015) found that maternal intensive parenting attitude-especially those rooted in Essentialism, Stimulation, and Child-centered-were related to anticipatory problem-solving behavior indicative of overparenting as described by Segrin et al. (2012). This overparenting behavior was, in turn, associated with a higher likelihood of enrolling children in structured activities, including creative and physical ones. ...
... In summary, most of the hypotheses were supported to some degree. Schiffrin et al. (2015) found that intensive parenting attitude was related to anticipatory problem-solving behavior and children's gross motor skills through enrollment in structured activities including creative and physical activities. However, their study was limited to only one parenting behavior and its effect was seen only in the outcomes of gross motor skill of children. ...
... Correlation analysis revealed the positiveness of Child-centered attitude; however, SEM analysis showed that this belief had double-sided effects. Although Schiffrin et al. (2015) indicated that Child-centered attitude might affect anticipatory problem-solving behavior, Egami (2020) found that it had a negative relationship with overprotection which was closely related to anticipatory problem-solving behavior. Moreover, while being Child-centered was correlated with low life satisfaction of mothers in the study of Rizzo et al. (2013), it was correlated with parental delight and efficacy for Liss et al. (2013). ...
“Intensive parenting” is a tendency to invest parents’ time, money, and energy in their child. This also includes some gender bias concerning a mother being the best person to primarily raise her children. Some psychology scholars have pointed out that this attitude causes much stress, anxiety, depression, and a sense of guilt among mothers. However, its effects on children have yet to be revealed using an extensive survey, and this indicates the need to investigate any possible impact of an intensive parenting attitude on children. The aim of this study was to elucidate a link between a maternal intensive parenting attitude and their children’s social competence through maternal parenting behavior. This was based on collecting data from 675 Japanese women who were mothers of preschoolers using the Japanese version of the Intensive Parenting Attitude Questionnaire, the Positive and Negative Parenting Scale, and the Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire. The results showed that the “Essentialism,” “Fulfillment,” and “Child-centered” components of intensive parenting attitude influenced the “involvement and monitoring” and “positive responsivity” of parenting behavior. Furthermore, these two parenting behaviors affected children’s prosocial behavior and hyperactivity/inattention. These findings suggest that an intensive parenting attitude has some impact on children as well as mothers, both positively and negatively, pointing to a serious effect on society.
... Parental determinism and the need for risk management have together promoted an intensive parenting culture (Smith, 2010) by following a rationale that earlier and greater investments towards a child's future are likely to yield greater returns (Gillies, 2020). Intensive parenting can be understood as a parenting culture that presumes that intensive parental involvement in children's lives is necessary to maximise the child's physical, cognitive, and social development (Hays, 1996, p. 9;Lee et al., 2014, p. 26-27;Schiffrin, Godfrey, Liss, & Erchull, 2014). Thus, it may impact parenting behaviour. ...
... Thus, it may impact parenting behaviour. The required intensive parenting practices can vary from optimal child diet and/or toys, books or games to stimulate 'brain growth' (Thornton, 2011) to adult organised and monitored extracurricular or social activities and tutoring to maximise academic success (Lareau, 2002;Schiffrin et al., 2014). Intensive parenting culture does not only entail increased parental involvement in children's lives but also includes the rationale of parental determinism. ...
... Findings from this study showed that parents who believed their children would become happy, sociable, and independent adults were generally trusting about their children's future that they attributed to their child's characteristics rather than to their own parenting efforts (e.g., 'if he puts his mind to it, he'll be able to do it'). This finding suggested that, contrary to the intensive parenting culture that presumes that intensive parental involvement in the child's life is necessary to maximise cognitive and socio-emotional outcomes (Schiffrin et al., 2014), these parents did not perceive their parental actions as 'essential' in ensuring their children's future success as adults. Rather, they described their children 'making their own choices'. ...
Caring for a child born at an extremely low gestational age places stresses on parents in the context of worries about the child’s mental and physical development. This convergent multistrand mixed methods inquiry aimed to improve our understanding of experiences of parents of children born extremely preterm (EP) entering adolescence. In the systematic narrative review of literature, I collated findings from current publications assessing long-term parent outcomes following preterm birth. The empirical data comprised qualitative semi-structured telephone interviews with parents of EP children and cross-sectional survey data of parenting stress among parents of EP and full-term born children as they transitioned into adolescence at 11 years of age, collected as part of a longitudinal national birth cohort study of extreme prematurity in England (EPICure 2). The findings were reflected against the modern Western understanding of parenting, namely the framework of parental determinism, to place them in a wider sociocultural context. Three hundred parents (175 EP parents and 125 full-term parents) completed a postal Parent Questionnaire and 22 parents of EP children participated in an interview. The data were analysed statistically and thematically as appropriate and the outcomes were narratively integrated. The systematic review results indicated that the research on long-term parent outcomes following EP/VP birth had methodological limitations and the findings were inconclusive. Yet publications reported a trend towards increased family impact among families with adolescents born preterm. EP parents reported higher levels of parenting stress in comparison with the parents of full-term born children. High parenting stress among EP parents was associated with younger child age, child attendance at a special educational needs school or unit, and higher parent educational level. Parental ambitions and the parents’ perceptions of their child’s ability to reach adult independence guided how they described their parenting behaviour. Parents who anticipated their children to have challenges with future independence described varying parental behavioural responses to support their child’s development in accord with parental determinism. Findings from this study suggest that wider social factors influence parenting stress and experiences, and therefore affect the way in which parents approach their roles. This study has further directed attention to the health and well-being of parents who care for children with long-term morbidities.
... Namely, parents emphasize their own happiness and tend to be fully invested in being "good" parents to their children. Putting children's needs before self needs defines parenting style termed "child-centrism" (Ashton-James et al., 2013;Liss et al., 2013;Rizzo et al., 2013;Schiffrin et al., 2015), which thus far was studied among mothers alone (Gauthier et al., 2021). Most of the studies conducted thus far on intensive mothering refer to its impact on mothers' mental state (see, e.g., Ashton-James et al., 2013;Kestler-Peleg and Lavenda, 2018). ...
... The present study focuses on the examination of the factors representing Belsky's model: a parent's characteristic (i.e., parental self-efficacy), a child's characteristic (i.e., child's temperament), and context characteristics (i.e., perceived social support and marital satisfaction). Specifically, this study examines the impact of these factors on contemporary parenting, namely child-centric parenting (Ashton-James et al., 2013;Liss et al., 2013;Rizzo et al., 2013;Schiffrin et al., 2015) among fathers. In the following paragraphs we will detail the professional literature on each factor and its association with child-centrism. ...
Introduction
The most prevalent conceptualization of parenting of our time is intensive parenting which refers to parents’ overinvolvement in children’s lives, placing the child’s needs before others’ needs, including the needs of the parents themselves (i.e., Child-centrism). Intensive parenting is mostly attributed to mothers as they are still bearing the bulk responsibility for child rearing. Nevertheless, as the role of fathers changed in recent decades it is crucial to examine intensive parenting among fathers and understand whether factors that are associated with intensive mothering are associated with intensive fatherhood as well. The current study uses Belsky’s Process of Parenting model to fill-in the gap.
Methods
Participants were 301 Israeli fathers of preschool children aged 22 to 50 years old (M=36.34, SD=5.01). They filled out online self-report questionnaires dealing with intensive parenting style, child temperament, social support, marital satisfaction, and parental self-efficacy.
Results
The model explained 64% of paternal child-centrism. Fathers who reported having children with more difficult temperament, reported low social support, low marital satisfaction, and low self-efficacy, were more intensive in their parenting style.
Discussion
The present findings are discussed in relation to previous findings regarding maternal child-centrism with an emphasis on their important implications for professionals working with families for the benefit of parents’ and children’s wellbeing.
... Some research suggests that 2-to 5-year-old children's participation in structured and enriched activities does not necessarily predict their cognitive, social, and physical outcomes [34]. Children thrive when offered some balance between the freedom of unstructured time to explore and self-direct their learning and more pointed and directed activities. ...
... Children younger than six years exhibited less solo play and caregiverchild interaction, whereas peer interaction became more frequent, indicating that the design helped preschool children develop peer interaction. Interaction and communication among peers help children grow and develop [33,34]. Because of the school-age children occupying the facility, the frequency of solo play behavior and peer interaction increased and declined, respectively. ...
Peer interaction through play is one approach to stimulating preschool children’s growth. The outdoor playground facilities in parks are ideal places for children to practice their social skills. This study utilized nonparticipant observation to observe and record children’s play behaviors and interactions with others to ascertain whether outdoor playground facilities favor peer interaction. We summarized the design elements of peer-interaction-promoting playground facilities to optimize the facilities by determining the types of environments and facilities that trigger peer interaction. This study discovered that children spent most of their time in solo play and the least in peer interaction. Such interaction occurred only in spaces in which children stopped briefly. After installing a new bubble machine designed to increase peer interaction, solo play behaviors and parent–child interactions became less frequent for children younger than six years old, whereas peer interaction became more frequent. During the peer interaction of children aged 3 to 6, the frequency of level one, three, and four interactions increased. They also displayed level five behaviors, which were not observed before the installation. The new facility triggered higher-level behaviors, such as cooperation and playing together, enhancing peer interaction between different age groups.
... When parents support their children's developing autonomy, their children are more likely to demonstrate better psychological adjustment (LeMoyne & Buchanan, 2011;Schiffrin et al., 2014Schiffrin et al., , 2015Segrin et al., 2013;Srivastav & Mathur, 2020). However, there is a fine line between parental behavior that supports children's autonomy versus behavior that controls, intrudes, and limits them. ...
... Previous studies on emerging adult offspring of heterosexual parents showed that greater helicopter parenting was associated with more anxiety, depression, psychological distress, behavioral problems, and lower life meaning and satisfaction (LeMoyne & Buchanan, 2011;Schiffrin et al., 2014Schiffrin et al., , 2015Segrin et al., 2013;Srivastav & Mathur, 2020). Consequently, the present study operationalized mental health into several domains (i.e., behavioral problems, satisfaction with life, meaning in life, positive and negative affect) to gain a more complete understanding of the implications of helicopter parenting for emerging adult offspring of lesbian parents. ...
Helicopter parents are highly involved parents who hover over and around their child, applying developmentally inappropriate levels of control and tangible assistance. Previous research with different-sex parent families indicates that helicopter parenting is particularly problematic in emerging adulthood as it may indirectly affect the offspring’s mental health through their use of emotional avoidant coping. Knowledge is lacking, however, on the antecedents and consequences of helicopter parenting in lesbian-parent families. The present longitudinal, questionnaire-based study investigated the effect of homophobic stigmatization in adolescence on mental health via helicopter parenting and emotional avoidant coping among 76 (37 females and 39 males) National Longitudinal Lesbian Family Study 25 year-old offspring of lesbian parents. All participants were cisgender, born in the USA, and conceived through donor sperm, with the majority being White, heterosexual, highly educated, and no longer living with their parents. Parents who reported that their offspring experienced homophobic stigmatization in adolescence were likely to enact higher helicopter parenting in emerging adulthood. Then, higher scores on helicopter parenting were associated with offspring’s greater use of emotional avoidant coping, which in turn negatively affected the mental health of emerging adult offspring. Discussed in light of Bowen’s family differentiation theory, the results suggest that clinicians should examine helicopter parenting in the context of lesbian parents’ developmental history and potential tendency to project their own concerns about safety onto their child in order to reduce the distress of experienced homophobic stigmatization.
... Overparenting, which is colloquially known as helicopter parenting (Cline & Fay, 1990;LeMoyne & Buchanan, 2011;McGinley & Davis, 2021;Segrin et al., 2022), refers to the engagement of parents in developmentally inappropriate practices toward their children that take the form of excessive involvement in decision making, problem solving, and risk aversion (Segrin et al., 2012). Considerable research links overparenting with negative child outcomes such as poorer mental health, lower self-efficacy, and ineffective coping skills (Givertz & Segrin, 2014;Leung, 2020;Padilla-Walker & Nelson, 2012;Reed et al., 2016;Schiffrin et al., 2014Schiffrin et al., , 2015Schiffrin et al., , 2019Segrin et al., 2012Segrin et al., , 2013Segrin et al., , 2015Winner & Nicholson, 2018; see Metin-Orta & Miski-Aydın, 2020 for a review), as this type of parental involvement limits children's autonomy, sense of competence, and responsibility (Odenweller et al., 2014;Schiffrin et al., 2014Schiffrin et al., , 2015Schiffrin et al., , 2019Segrin et al., 2015Segrin et al., , 2022. ...
... Overparenting, which is colloquially known as helicopter parenting (Cline & Fay, 1990;LeMoyne & Buchanan, 2011;McGinley & Davis, 2021;Segrin et al., 2022), refers to the engagement of parents in developmentally inappropriate practices toward their children that take the form of excessive involvement in decision making, problem solving, and risk aversion (Segrin et al., 2012). Considerable research links overparenting with negative child outcomes such as poorer mental health, lower self-efficacy, and ineffective coping skills (Givertz & Segrin, 2014;Leung, 2020;Padilla-Walker & Nelson, 2012;Reed et al., 2016;Schiffrin et al., 2014Schiffrin et al., , 2015Schiffrin et al., , 2019Segrin et al., 2012Segrin et al., , 2013Segrin et al., , 2015Winner & Nicholson, 2018; see Metin-Orta & Miski-Aydın, 2020 for a review), as this type of parental involvement limits children's autonomy, sense of competence, and responsibility (Odenweller et al., 2014;Schiffrin et al., 2014Schiffrin et al., , 2015Schiffrin et al., , 2019Segrin et al., 2015Segrin et al., , 2022. ...
Although extant research demonstrates the negative impact of overparenting on child well-being, there remains a paucity of evidence on the effect of overparenting on the parents’ own well-being. The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of overparenting on parental well-being, and to explore the mechanisms through which overparenting influences the well-being of working mothers, particularly among established adults. Thus, we examined the serial mediation effects of perceived stress and family-to-work conflict (FWC) in overparenting and well-being linkage. With this aim, the data were collected from working mothers (N = 258) aged between 30 and 45, a period of in their lifespan generally characterized by efforts devoted to career and care. Via serial mediation analyses, the findings postulate that (a) overparenting relates to the well-being and perceived stress of working mothers, (b) perceived stress (both individually and jointly with FWC) mediates the relationship between overparenting and well-being, and (c) perceived stress and FWC serially mediate the association between overparenting and well-being. The findings provide evidence related to the well-being experiences of established adulthood women in struggling their career-and care crunch from a perspective of overparenting, stress, and family-to-work conflict.
... This intersects with 21st century parenting norms. Influenced by anxieties about children's educational attainment and safety, risk-averse caregiving prioritizes children's achievement at the expense of play and encourages the heavy surveillance of children's activities [14,[16][17][18][19]. ...
... High-quality early childhood education can mitigate the effects of early adversity and reduce inequities in more disadvantaged children [49]. Research is growing on the importance of outdoor play to children's physical, social, and cognitive development; risk perception; and mental health [14,[16][17][18][19], and it is necessary to ensure children's regular and repeated access to outdoor play opportunities, particularly in ELCCs. To facilitate this, ECEs need to understand the essence and benefits of risky outdoor play for children and how best to provide and accommodate it. ...
Background:
Outdoor play is critical to children's healthy development and well-being. Early learning and childcare centers (ELCCs) are important venues for increasing children's outdoor play opportunities, and early childhood educators' (ECE) perception of outdoor play can be a major barrier to outdoor play. The OutsidePlay-ECE risk-reframing intervention is a fully automated and open access web-based intervention to reframe ECEs' perceptions of the importance of outdoor play and risk in play and to promote a change in their practice in supporting it in ELCC settings. We grounded the intervention in social cognitive theory and behavior change techniques.
Objective:
The aim of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of the OutsidePlay-ECE web-based risk-reframing intervention.
Methods:
We conducted a single-blind randomized controlled trial in Canada between December 2020 and June 2021 to test the OutsidePlay-ECE risk-reframing intervention for ECEs. We recruited participants using social media and mass emails through our partner and professional networks. We invited ECEs and administrators working in an ELCC, who can speak, read, and understand English. We randomized consented participants to the intervention or control condition. The participants allocated to the intervention condition received a link to the OutsidePlay-ECE intervention. Participants allocated to the control condition read the Position Statement on Active Outdoor Play, a 4-page document on research and recommendations for action in addressing barriers to outdoor play. The primary outcome was a change in tolerance of risk in play. The secondary outcome was goal attainment. We collected data on the web via REDCap (Vanderbilt University) at baseline and 1 week and 3 months after intervention.
Results:
A total of 563 participants completed the baseline survey, which assessed their demographics and tolerance of risk in play. They were then randomized: 281 (49.9%) to the intervention and 282 (50.1%) to the control condition. Of these, 136 (48.4%) and 220 (78%) participants completed the baseline requirements for the intervention and control conditions, respectively. At 1 week after intervention, 126 (44.8%) and 209 (74.1%) participants completed follow-up assessments, respectively, and at 3 months after intervention, 119 (42.3%) and 195 (69.1%) participants completed the assessments, respectively. Compared with participants in the control condition, participants in the intervention group had significantly higher tolerance of risk in play at 1 week (β=.320; P=.001) and 3 months after intervention (β=.251; P=.009). Intention-to-treat analyses replicated these findings (β=.335; P<.001 and β=.271; P=.004, respectively). No significant intervention effect was found for goal attainment outcomes (odds ratio 1.124, 95% CI 0.335-3.774; P=.85).
Conclusions:
The results of this randomized controlled trial demonstrated that the OutsidePlay-ECE intervention was effective and had a sustained effect in increasing ECEs' and administrators' tolerance of risk in play. It was not effective in increasing goal attainment.
Trial registration:
ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04624932; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04624932.
International registered report identifier (irrid):
RR2-10.2196/31041.
... This intersects with 21st century parenting norms. Influenced by anxieties about children's educational attainment and safety, risk-averse caregiving prioritizes children's achievement at the expense of play and encourages the heavy surveillance of children's activities [14,[16][17][18][19]. ...
... High-quality early childhood education can mitigate the effects of early adversity and reduce inequities in more disadvantaged children [49]. Research is growing on the importance of outdoor play to children's physical, social, and cognitive development; risk perception; and mental health [14,[16][17][18][19], and it is necessary to ensure children's regular and repeated access to outdoor play opportunities, particularly in ELCCs. To facilitate this, ECEs need to understand the essence and benefits of risky outdoor play for children and how best to provide and accommodate it. ...
BACKGROUND
Outdoor play is critical to children’s healthy physical, social, emotional and intellectual development and well-being; yet children’s opportunities for outdoor play have steadily decreased across generations in many developed countries. Early learning and childcare centers are an important venue for increasing children’s outdoor play opportunities because many children spend most of their waking hours in these facilities. Early childhood educators’ perception of outdoor play and its inherent physical risks can be a major barrier to outdoor play. The OutsidePlay-ECE risk-reframing intervention is a fully-automated and open access web-based intervention to reframe early childhood educators’ perception of the importance of outdoor play and risk in play, and to promote a change in their practice in supporting for children’s outdoor play in early learning and childcare center settings. We grounded the intervention in social cognitive theory and behavior change techniques.
OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the efficacy of the OutsidePlay-ECE web-based risk-reframing intervention.
METHODS
We conducted a single-blinded randomized controlled trial in Canada between December 2020 to June 2021 to test the OutsidePlay-ECE risk-reframing intervention for early learning and childcare center educators. We conducted recruitment primarily through social media and mass emails through our partner and professional networks. We invited those interested in participating to self-assess their eligibility: working as an early childhood educator and/or administrator in an early learning and childcare center in Canada, and able to speak, read and understand English. We randomized consented participants to the intervention condition or the control condition. Participants allocated to the intervention condition received a link to the OutsidePlay-ECE intervention. The OutsidePlay-ECE intervention guided participants through three chapters, consisting of: 1) an introduction to outdoor play, and reflections on their own childhood experiences of play and the experiences of children in their center, 2) a series of interactive video scenarios about outdoor play, and 3) setting a personalized goal for change in their centre. Participants allocated to the control condition read the Position Statement on Active Outdoor Play, a 4-page document on research and recommendations for action in addressing barriers to outdoor play. The primary outcome was increase in tolerance of risk in play. The secondary outcome was goal attainment. We collected data online via the REDCap at baseline, 1-week, and 3-month post-intervention. We conducted randomization using sealedenvelope.com. We concealed allocations from researchers at assignment and during data analysis.
RESULTS
A total of 563 participants completed baseline survey consisting of sociodemographic questions and a questionnaire that assessed participant tolerance for risk in play, self-efficacy, and stage of change. These participants were then randomized: 281 in the intervention, and 282 in the control condition. Of 281 participants who were allocated to the intervention condition, 199 completed the baseline requirement (i.e., completion of the baseline survey and the intervention, and setting-up their goal). Respectively, of 282 participants who were allocated to the control condition, 221 completed the baseline requirement. At 1-week post intervention 126 and 209 participants completed assessments for each condition, respectively, and at 3-month post intervention, 119 and 195 completed the assessments, respectively. Compared to participants in the control condition, participants in the intervention had significantly higher tolerance of risk in play at 1-week (β=0.323, P= 0.001) and 3-month post-intervention (β=0.342, P= 0.001), after controlling for sociodemographic covariates. Intention-to-treat analysis replicated these findings (β=0.348, P= 0.001 and β=0.35, P= 0.001, respectively). No significant intervention effect was found for the goal attainment outcome.
CONCLUSIONS
The results of this randomized controlled trial demonstrate that the OutsidePlay-ECE intervention was effective and had sustained effect in increasing early childhood educators’ and administrators’ tolerance of risk in play. It was not effective at increasing goal attainment.
CLINICALTRIAL
ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT04624932. Retrospectively registered on April 26, 2021.
INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT
RR2-10.2196/31041
... First, this parenting standard has been linked to parents' dedication to involving their children in various activities and providing them with the ample stimulation needed for the proper development of cognitive functions (Jaiswal & Choudhuri, 2018;Strathearn et al., 2020). Parents often believe that the best way to provide their children with stimulation and educational enrichment is to enroll them in various extracurricular classes, which are expected to give them the skills they will need in adulthood (Gauthier & Jong, 2021;Schiffrin et al., 2015;Sjödin & Roman, 2018). Second, experts (psychologists, doctors, etc.) have played an influential role in the trend towards intensive parenting, as parents increasingly seek the advice of experts when deciding what's best for their offspring Liss et al., 2013;Loyal et al., 2017). ...
Intensive parenting (IP) is a contemporary parenting norm that emphasizes investing in children for their optimal growth and often strains parental resources. It demands centering family life around children and providing them with stimulating environments. Previous studies predominantly link IP to socioeconomic factors, overlooking its psychological determinants. Our research explores how support for IP is tied to individuals’ value systems. We use data from CRONOS online survey, conducted as a part of the European Social Survey (ESS) in 2016–2018. It covered over 1,500 people aged 18 and older. The survey included items that allowed the measurement of two central dimensions of IP: child-centeredness and stimulation (dependent variables in our study). To measure individuals’ values (our explanatory variables), we use ESS Schwartz’s value scale. Our analyses also controlled for key socioeconomic variables (country, sex, age, education, parity). Regression analysis reveals that tradition and security values positively correlate with both dimensions of intensive parenting, highlighting motivations to preserve traditions and ensure a secure future for children. Centering family’s life around children is additionally linked to benevolence, while the stimulation dimension – to achievement and (negatively) to universalism. This suggests that different aspects of IP may be motivated to some extent differently.
Highlights
• Childrearing standard of intensive parenting (IP) is tied to human values.
• Importance of tradition and security is a shared core for different aspects of IP.
• Child-centeredness ties additionally to caring for family wellbeing.
• Providing children with stimulation appears to be additionally fueled by the need of achievement.
• Depending on how IP is motivated, it may carry different consequences for children and parents.
... Across fields addressing child and family development, the study of parenting has had a deep, rich, and sometimes controversial history. From notions of good enough parenting (Winnicott, 1960) to intensive parenting (Schiffrin et al., 2015) to the evidence-based straightforward contention that parenting matters (Bornstein, 2005), parenting carries a substantial load in determining the quality of children's development and family well-being. Few experiences can match the many joys inherent in parenthood, but likewise few experiences present the frequent, often daily challenges that parenting does. ...
The growing base of research on parenting stress and its relation to child behavior problems has largely paralleled the emergence of developmental psychopathology as a field of inquiry. Specifically, the focus on mechanism rather than main effects has begun to elevate explanatory models in the connection between parenting stress and a variety of adverse child and parent conditions. Still, work on parenting stress is limited by conceptual confusion, the absence of attention to developmental differentiation, a focus on child-specific rather than system influences. Recent research on these parenting stress issues is briefly reviewed, highlighting studies that have illustrated developmental psychopathology perspectives. A conceptual model is offered to illustrate the complex recursive nature of connections between parenting stress, parenting behavior, parent well-being, and children’s adjustment, and I make a case for the adoption of a more systemic perspective to influence the next generation of developmental psychopathology research on parenting stress.
... However, increasing time investments could harm children at the top of the distribution. Is possible that intensive parenting, i.e. parents introducing excessive structured activities leading to overcrowding, could decrease (or at least not improve) developmental outcomes [41]. Unfortunately, without observing quality of time investments, is not possible to determine the underlying mechanisms for negative returns to time investments among children with high SED. ...
Parental behavior is paramount to child health and skill formation, explaining a significant portion of differences in developmental outcomes. However, little is known regarding the distributional effects of parental time allocation at different levels of children’s outcomes. I use a national administrative dataset of Chilean pre-school students to the estimate production functions for socioemotional development and body mass index z-scores at every decile of the distribution at baseline. Modest average effects conceal significant heterogeneity on the returns to parental time investments. Children in the bottom of the socioemotional development distribution could gain up to 0.4 standard deviations for a one standard deviation increase in time investments. A similar increase can lead to a reduction of 0.8 standard deviations in body mass index among severely obese students. Evidence reveals that children with high developmental scores are unlikely to benefit from additional parenting time.
... Based on an analysis of in-depth interviews with mothers of preschool children and an analysis of parenting manuals in the United States, Hays argued that a child-centred, expert-guided, emotionally absorbing, labour-intensive, and financially expensive model of parenting has become the dominant cultural model (Hays, 1996). To examine intensive parenting norms, Liss et al. (2013) developed the Intensive Parenting Attitudes Questionnaire (IPAQ) in the United States, where it has been widely used to study variations in parenting norms across gender, education, child's age, and between parents and childless individuals as well as the impact of endorsing these norms on child and parental well-being and children's developmental outcomes (Forbes et al., 2020;O'Brien et al., 2020;Rizzo et al., 2013;Schiffrin et al., 2014Schiffrin et al., , 2015. The IPAQ has also been adapted for use in France (Loyal et al., 2017(Loyal et al., , 2021. ...
Objective: We examine the measurement invariance (MI) of intensive parenting norms across three European countries as well as across gender, education, and parental status. Background: The social norms of intensive parenting have become increasingly dominant in recent decades. However, there is no measurement model of intensive parenting norms in large-scale social surveys and it is unknown whether these norms convey the same meanings across different social and cultural contexts. Method: This study draws on data from the European Social Survey Cross-national Online Survey panel (2017) administered in Estonia, Slovenia, and Great Britain. We conducted a multi-group confirmatory factor analysis and alignment optimization to assess the exact and approximate MI of intensive parenting norms across three countries and social contexts. Results: Due to a poor fit of the previously suggested four-factor model of intensive parenting norms, a revised two-factor model with stimulation and child-centred dimensions-excluding items that measure expert guidance and parental responsibility-was proposed. The two-factor model attained scalar invariance between educational groups and between parents of children aged under 12 years and others; however, only metric invariance was achieved among countries, gender, and parental status. The alignment optimization results suggest that the reduced scale is approximately invariant across all examined groups. Conclusion: This study highlights that the MI of parenting norms should not just be assumed but tested. This study provides insights into the conceptualisation of intensive parenting norms and recommendations for future research and development on measurement.
... Social Policy Report | 20 parents increasingly view children's leisure time as an opportunity for more adult-led activities, rather than allowing their children unsupervised playtime, which is also beneficial (Lareau, 2002;Schiffrin et al., 2015) and the lack of unstructured play may decrease wellbeing (Gray et al., 2023). Overall, the benefits of independent free play on child development far outweigh the potential risks, yet child neglect laws in most states in the U.S. often do not expressively allow this even if a parent is making reasonable and developmentally appropriate judgments about their child's ability. ...
Policies and programs designed to serve children and families are sometimes misaligned with developmental science research. Broad child neglect reporting laws, first adopted bythe United States in 1974, have led to families being prosecuted by child protection authorities for allowing children to participate in everyday age-appropriate activities unsupervised. In this report we describe the challenges of defining child neglect and outline the current landscape of neglect laws in the United States. We then provide a broad overview of some ofthe developmental milestones children need to reach to participate in unsupervised activitiesand the benefits of independent activities on child development. Children can often accomplish tasks at a much younger age than law, parents, and caregivers in the U.S. believe. We then turn to the literature from across the world and argue that culture, not innate ability, drives much of the variation in the age at which children can do things on their own. Finally, we make recommendations to parents, caregivers, legislators, advocates, and developmental scientists to better align practice with research. This is a social justice issue that should resonate across party, racial, and class lines. Developmental scientists are needed as advocates and advisors on policies impacting children and families, especially child neglect laws.
... Dřívější studie se v souvislosti s jevy týkajícími se intenzivního rodičovství zabývaly spíše jeho dopady (ať už pozitivními či negativními) na dítě (např. Rousseau & Scharf, 2015;Schiffrin, Godfrey, Liss, & Erchull, 2015). Nebylo však doposud zkoumáno, zda a jak intenzivní rodičovství a jeho aspekty souvisí s kvalitou interakce matky s dítětem. ...
... Originating in Hays' (1996) discussion of intensive mothering as an expert-guided, emotionally absorbing, time-demanding, and labor-intensive set of practices employed by middle-class women juggling work and family responsibilities, the concept has since broadened to encompass expectations of both mother and father involvement (Bernstein & Triger, 2010;Ishizuka, 2019). Related terms that appear in the family literature are child-centered parenting (Hays, 1996;Bluestone & Tamis-LeMonda,1999), over-parenting (Bernstein & Triger, 2010), and helicopter parenting (Bristow, 2014;Schiffrin, Godfrey, Liss & Erchull, 2015). ...
To be published in Journal of Family Issues:
Research on intensive parenting norms lacks a systematic framework to account for the ways these translate into everyday childcare practices and underlying logics and ideals. Based on in-depth interviews with 42 middle-class Israeli parents, we delineate a folk model of intensive parenting associated with ideals of self-fulfillment. The model comprises two parenting approaches, each differentiated into practices, logics, and cultural discourses. The first practice, "going-with-the-flow," stresses expressive bonding geared toward the child's desires. It points to a logic of aspiration development grounded in therapeutic discourse. The second practice, "getting-things-done," aims to activate the child to accomplish goals and reflects a logic of capability enhancement grounded in neoliberal discourse. By deconstructing contemporary parenting, we show that therapeutic and neoliberal values converge at the discursive level but are experienced as contradictory in everyday practice, thus accounting for the tensions of intensive parenting..
... A first aspect to highlight is that although some characteristics of intensive parenting could, in principle, have some benefits in child development, their mandates imply a huge demand for parents. The idealisation of these potential benefits and the neglect of the harmful effects that an excessive overprotection can have in the lives of both parents and children are aspects made invisible by this parenting ideology (Schiffrin et al., 2015). ...
The concept of intensive parenting refers to a trend that has broadened and extended the cultural mandates around what is expected of parents in the “adequate” exercise of their roles. It implies that they focus their vital attention on the upbringing of children and give them full dedication; invest an enormous amount of energy, resources and capacity for love; monitoring their own behaviour; and postponing their desires and interests in order to attend to those of their children. This review presents the main published research on intensive parenting in the last 10 years, focusing on the forms it takes in parenting and its implications for the well-being of parents. The results indicate that intensive parenting negatively affects the well-being of mothers and fathers. Differences and gender gaps are evident in these experiences between them.
... An increase in the time allocated to parenting is connected with the ideology of the socalled intensive parenting as an image of parent behavior (BAKER, 2019). The doctrine of intensive parenting has spread in recent years in many countries, having several negative consequences for both children and parents (ADAMS, 2020;SCHIFFRIN et al., 2014). As a result, it forms a common opinion that parenting requires sacrifice, expenses, huge responsibility and so on. ...
This study aims to measure the time allocated to child raising using parents’ self-assessment and the criterion of subjective time sufficiency or insufficiency. We surveyed 545 Russian parents from the Ural region and used factor analysis to identify the main determinants that affect the self-assessment of time allocated to parenting. We found that parents in the Russian Ural region believe they do not spend enough time with their children. Reasons for the insufficient amount of time allocated to parenting are the following: overload of labor duties at home and at work, psychological causes of intergenerational interaction, external reasons − studies, poor health, the need to care for other relatives and so on.
... Helicopter parenting is accompanied by a series of negative consequences (Casillas et al., 2021), including subjective and academic ill effects (Schiffrin et al., 2014). In addition, research suggests that strong parenting beliefs do not help children engage in structured activities (Schiffrin et al., 2015). Helicopter parenting negatively affects child development in such aspects as emotion and learning development (Kwon et al., 2017). ...
Attending cram school has long been a trend in ethnic Chinese culture areas, including Taiwan. Despite the fact that school reform policies have been implemented in Taiwan, cram schools have continued to prosper. Therefore, in this educational culture, how to achieve a good educational effect is also a topic worthy of discussion. However, whether students really engage in those tutoring programs provided by cram schools has seldom been studied. To address this gap, this study explored how parents’ hovering attitude toward life and coursework influences their children’s engagement in cram schools. This study targeted those students who attend English cram schools to test the correlates between two types of helicopter parenting, tutoring engagement and continued attendance at cram schools. A total of 320 questionnaires were sent out, and 300 were returned, giving an overall response rate of 93.75%. Excluding seven incomplete or invalid questionnaires, 293 valid questionnaires were received. The results of this study show that hovering behavior awareness is negatively related to cram school engagement, whereas cram school engagement is positively related to the intention to continue attending cram school. Moreover, the results imply that parents should alleviate their helicoptering behavior to enhance their children’s engagement in cram school tutoring programs.
... Given its excessive focus on the child, it is not surprising that research has found that helicopter parenting is associated with narcissistic traits in children (Eberly-Lewis et al. 2018) and ego inflation (Yılmaz 2020). Moreover, by trying to anticipate and solve difficulties before they affect the child, helicopter parents prevent their children from becoming independent and making autonomous choices (Schiffrin et al. 2015). As a result, these over-parented children consider that they have the right to expect others to solve their difficulties and give them a lot of support of the kind that they received from their parents, creating a general sense of entitlement (Segrin et al. 2012). ...
The concept of the “cult of the child” highlights a radical change in child representation. Having been neglected and even disrespected for centuries, children are now valued, and their interests are placed above all others. This change in views of children, reflected in changes in laws, institutions and practices, has also spread to two pillars of our democratic societies, the family and the school, with a number of consequences for parents, teachers and children. The purpose of this article is to (1) describe the changes in thinking that have led to the cult of the child, (2) examine their consequences for children and parents, (3) examine their consequences for students and teachers, and (4) reflect on how to preserve the benefits of these changes while limiting the negative consequences.
... The ideology of intensive parenting-describing an ideal parent as providing intensive child-centered care-is one of the social norms widely shared in the United States (Ishizuka, 2018;Nomaguchi & Milkie, 2020). This ideology, which was adopted by parents across different social classes, stresses the idea that greater involvement in parenting can promote the outcome of child development (Fischer, 2020;Schiffrin et al., 2015;Wall, 2010). Nevertheless, parents, especially mothers, with strong beliefs of intensive parenting tended to show increased stress, anxiety, guilt, and depressive symptoms (Ishizuka, 2018;Rizzo et al., 2013;Wall, 2010). ...
Research has documented significant influences of parental psychological well-being on parenting. Yet, few studies have examined multiple measures of psychological well-being simultaneously to understand the underlying pathways and mediation factors. The present study employed new parents, without chronically high depressive symptoms, to examine across-time associations between the frequency of story reading and multiple measures of parental psychological well-being, namely the depressive symptoms, self-esteem, and global sense of personal control, in the first six years after becoming parents. Cross-lagged panel models with three time intervals were constructed to examine the across-time associations with 177 new parents. Significant direct and indirect effects between parental psychological well-being and story reading in the first six years after childbirth were identified. In the first three years after childbirth, new parents with more depressive symptoms and lower self-esteem tended to engage in more frequent story reading. New parents’ global sense of personal control, when the child was one to three years old, had a direct positive effect on story reading two to three years later. Through the mediation of self-esteem, parents with low psychological well-being after childbirth tended to engage in more frequent story reading when the child was three to six years old. Furthermore, the indirect effects of story reading on parental well-being were mediated by self-esteem and global sense of personal control. Findings from the present study underscored the importance of considering multiple measures of psychological well-being in understanding the bidirectional interactions between new parents’ well-being and early story reading in early family context.
... Involvement allows parents to monitor school and classroom activities, and to coordinate their efforts with teachers to encourage acceptable classroom behavior and ensure that the child completes schoolwork (Hill et al., 2004). Parent engagement in schools is reported as influencing student achievement, nurture the intelligence of young children (Schiffrin et al., 2015), and decrease school dropout rates (Park & Holloway, 2013). The parents, therefore, should be encouraged to get involved more in their children's academics for better performance as they are key players in their children's academic performance. ...
The paradigm shift in education gearing towards achieving the goals of the 21 st century teaching & learning enables everybody in all educational institutions to respond to the call of the challenge. Ensuring every key aspect and important element of successful curriculum implementation mainly lies on the significant impact on which the curriculum should serve its purpose. This paper presents critical review focusing on the highlights in which social, technology, economic, environmental, and political (STEEP) landscapes impact Philippine K to 12 Science Education. It follows an issues approach to about current concerns in relation to the faces of science education in the country vis-à-vis theoretical and philosophical perspectives. This paper provides scenarios highlighting the possible contributions of the different landscapes which could serve as areas to maintain good practices and/or potential areas for improvement to achieve the mission and vision of the Department of Education. There are challenges that the whole educational system in the country has been facing since the enhanced basic education curriculum was enacted and the Department of Education has been continuously looking for ways while laying strategic directions to lead the entire basic education institutions in achieving the standards of 21 st century skills and learning outcomes along with the other countries in the Southeast Asian region and of the entire Asia. All educational institutions and educational advocates should continuously work together to enable the educational system in the country achieve inclusive growth and global competitiveness considering various landscapes that shape the educational landscape in the country.
... To date, the Intensive Parenting Attitudes Questionnaire (IPAQ) is the only measure that has been widely used in the field of family psychology and counseling to assess intensive parenting attitudes (Liss, Schiffrin, Mackintosh, et al., 2013). Previous studies have provided reliability and validity evidence of the scale (Adams, 2020;Forbes et al., 2020;Liss, Schiffrin, Mackintosh, et al., 2013;Loyal, 2017;Loyal et al., 2017Loyal et al., , 2020Prikhidko & Swank, 2019;Schiffrin et al., 2015). However, there is concern over the measurement invariance (MI) of the scale, or whether the scale and its factor structure measure the same construct across different gender and racial groups without measurement bias. ...
Intensive parenting attitudes describe parents' views on child-rearing. Currently, Intensive Parenting Attitudes Questionnaire (IPAQ) is the only measure widely used in the field of family psychology and counseling to assess intensive parenting attitudes. However, it was developed from and validated with samples of predominately White mothers, which raises questions about its validity and generalizability to fathers and parents of other racial groups. The purpose of this study was to address this issue and assess the measurement invariance of the IPAQ with the data collected from both mothers and fathers of three racial groups (White, Black, and Asian Americans). Results indicated that measurement invariance of the IPAQ scale was not supported across gender and race, suggesting that the scale should be used with caution with different gender and racial groups. Recommendations were made to improve the scale and future studies to enhance the psychometric properties of the IPAQ were discussed. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).
... While a majority of related studies selected children as the target sample [32,33], few studies paid attention to its impacts on early adolescents. In fact, early adolescents may react more rigorously towards concerted cultivation. ...
Background:
Concerted cultivation is a parenting strategy that parents nurture their children intensively by involving heavily in their children's academic sphere as well as offering them different structured "enrichment" activities so that their children can succeed in the future competitive "rug rat race". While this parenting strategy has been regarded as an effective strategy to promote child and adolescent development, it is deemed to create stress and anxiety for their children. The present study examined the relationship between concerted cultivation and adolescent psychopathology (indexed by depression and anxiety) via parent-child conflict among Chinese adolescents in Hong Kong over time.
Method:
A sample of 1570 young adolescents (48.5% girls, mean age at time 1 = 12.6, SD = 0.76) were recruited from 19 secondary schools in Hong Kong. Adolescents were invited to fill out a questionnaire that contained measures of concerted cultivation, parent-child conflict, anxiety and depression in two consecutive years.
Results:
Results from structural equation modeling showed that higher levels of paternal concerted cultivation were associated with higher levels of adolescent psychopathology via increased father-child conflict over time. However, maternal concerted cultivation was linked to greater mother-child conflict but reduced father-child conflict, which was associated with adolescent psychopathology.
Discussion:
Rather than regarding concerted cultivation as an effective parenting strategy that promotes adolescent development, the findings indicated that concerted cultivation increased adolescent psychopathology via increased parent-child conflict. The study sheds new light for family practitioners and educators in their awareness of the adverse effects of concerted cultivation and designing appropriate parent education programs for parents.
... However, providing accommodations results in negative outcomes such as increased symptomatology, functional impairment, and increased caregiver burden (Francazio et al., 2016;Lee et al., 2015;Storch et al., 2015). While parental involvement is important for achieving positive child outcomes (Schiffrin et al., 2015), the associations between helicopter parenting and parental accommodations with increased symptom severity are problematic for child development. ...
High parental involvement has been linked to positive outcomes; however, helicopter parenting may result in negative outcomes. The behaviors demonstrated by “helicopter parents” resemble parental accommodations, which are behavior modifications intended to alleviate their child’s distress. The current study examined the relation between helicopter parenting and parental accommodations, while also examining child internalizing and externalizing symptomatology as possible moderators. Parents ( N = 400) of children (ages 4–11) from across the United States completed surveys and rating scales. Parents, who endorsed higher levels of helicopter parenting, endorsed significantly higher levels of accommodations than parents who endorsed lower levels of helicopter parenting. Results suggested helicopter parenting differed depending on the types of accommodations provided. This study provides additional clarity for the construct of helicopter parenting and suggests that parents higher in this construct may exhibit difficulties related to accommodating their child’s diagnostic symptoms.
Background: In the contemporary context, helicopter parenting which is a common practice and in Southeast Asia region, it is a growing parenting approach. It has several components that affect adolescents' and emerging adults' physical, psychological, and social well-being.
Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted to assess the state of helicopter parenting style of parents of late adolescents of Police Lines School and College, Rangpur, Bangladesh. To measures the parenting style of parents of adolescent the ‘Helicopter Parenting Scale’ (HPS) was used.
Results: The mean age of the adolescent was 17.7±0.6 years. The mean of HP scores was 3.6±0.5. About three out of five participants had a perceived average level of HP (58.9%) and a few of them had a high level of HP (2.3%). A statistically significant association found within the level of HP and adolescent’s family type (p<0.05) and the perceived level of HP was average among the adolescents who came from the nuclear family (61.8%). The HP scores were high in the nuclear family (3.62±0.413) and parents’ living together (3.59±0.422). There were significant differences found in the HP scores with the adolescent’s family type and their parent’s relationship state (p<0.05).
Conclusion: The study found that nuclear families were more likely to adopt helicopter parenting than other types of families, with their perceived level of this parenting style being assessed as averagely good.
Smart home technologies are making their way into families. Parents' and children's shared use of smart home technologies has received growing attention in CSCW and related research communities. Families and children are also frequently featured as target audiences in smart home product marketing. However, there is limited knowledge of how exactly children and family interactions are portrayed in smart home product marketing, and to what extent those portrayals align with the actual consideration of children and families in product features and resources for child safety and privacy. We conducted a content analysis of product websites and online resources of 102 smart home products, as these materials constitute a main marketing channel and information source about products for consumers. We found that despite featuring children in smart home marketing, most analyzed product websites did not mention child safety features and lacked sufficient information on how children's data is collected and used. Specifically, our findings highlight misalignments in three aspects: (1) children are depicted as users of smart home products but there are insufficient child-friendly product features; (2) harmonious child-product co-presence is portrayed but potential child safety issues are neglected; and (3) children are shown as the subject of monitoring and datafication but there is limited information on child data collection and use. We discuss how parent-child relationships and parenting may be negatively impacted by such marketing depictions, and we provide design and policy recommendations for better incorporating child safety and privacy considerations into smart home products.
Research on intensive parenting norms still lacks a systematic framework to account for the ways these translate into everyday childcare practices and underlying logics and ideals. Based on in-depth interviews with 42 middle-class Israeli parents, we delineate a folk model of intensive parenting associated with ideals of self-fulfillment. The model comprises two parenting approaches, each differentiated into practices, logics, and cultural discourses. The first approach is characterized by “going-with-the-flow” practices stressing expressive bonding geared toward the child’s desires. It points to a logic of aspiration development grounded in therapeutic discourse. The second approach is associated with practices of “getting-things-done” by “activating” the child to accomplish goals and reflects a logic of capability enhancement grounded in neoliberal discourse. By deconstructing contemporary parenting, we show that therapeutic and neoliberal values converge at the discursive level but are experienced as contradictory in everyday practice, thus accounting for the tensions of intensive parenting.
This study explores how mothers in the US described challenges to their children’s (ages birth to eight) play experiences at home during social distancing due to the COVID-19 virus. Understanding their lived experiences is valuable because it will add insight into the effects of this unique time period on the critical role parent-child interactions play in children’s physical, social, and emotional well-being. Using a phenomenological design, interviews with 14 mothers revealed a common experience in which play efforts were altered at times due to challenges related to social distancing and COVID-19. Four themes described these challenges: Lack of Parent Resources and Support, Work and Child Care Balance, Children’s Struggles with Social Isolation, and Children’s Uncertainty Regarding COVID-19. Mothers believed it was their responsibility to keep their children engaged in play as part of their childcare duties. They struggled to balance work and childcare, did not always enjoy playing with their children, and desired alone time to recover during this challenging time. They sought to best meet their children’s needs but had to make allowances to their parenting practices and play attitudes. The authors discuss how more intensive parenting philosophies could be difficult to sustain when society does not operate as usual.
Intensive parenting as a childrearing strategy and practice has gained territory in families of the Western world in recent decades and its ideologies have infiltrated popular culture and social policies. It has received an unprecedented amount of journalistic as well as academic attention. Nevertheless, little do we know about how these social practices and underlying ideologies are shaping the generations of children who are experiencing them (see, e.g., Schiffrin et al., 2014; Yerkes, et al., 2021). We know even less about how, in consequence, intensive parenting may influence the societies these children shall later inhabit as adults. Nancy McDermott’s The Problem with Parenting teases apart these recent childrearing practices that form a characteristic pattern she refers to as ‘Parenting’, with a capital P. The author traces how they have emerged in response to subsequent turning points in the development of the American (middle-class) family and how they have become woven into the fabric of late twentieth and early twenty-first century American (and Western middle-, and upper-middle class) society.
В статье анализируются установки, повседневные практики и ресурсные стратегии интенсивного материнства в российской монородительской семье. Методологические основы. Методологической основой исследования выступает ресурсный подход, позволивший выяснить, как в условиях малоресурсности монородительской семьи женщина совмещает практики интенсивного материнства и стремление самостоятельно обеспечить семью средствами для нормального существования, выявить ресурсные стратегии монородительской семьи в условиях интенсивного материнства. Авторами приводятся результаты собственного эмпирического исследования, включавшего очное анкетирование, по результатам которого женщинам, соответствовавшим критериям исследования (монородители, реализующие модель интенсивного материнства), было предложено принять участие во втором этапе исследования методом полуструктурированного интервью. Всего было опрошено 70 женщин, проживающих в Ростове-на-Дону, и проведено 6 интервью. Результаты и их обсуждение. Авторы приходят к выводу о том, что, несмотря на малоресурсность, в монородительской семье установки на интенсивное материнство выражены сильнее, чем в полной и более ресурсной семье. Матери в монородительских семьях показывают предрасположенность к установкам детоцентризма, сильнее сконцентрированы на ребенке и даже подбирают трудовую занятость в соответствии с интересами ребенка. По результатам исследования было выделено три ресурсных стратегии организации жизнедеятельности монородительской семьи: самостоятельное материальное обеспечение семьи (в основе индивидуальные ресурсы одинокой матери); ресурсы родительской семьи женщины (значительный вклад в воспитание ребенка вносит родительская семья женщины), а также поддержка отца ребенка (включающая воспитательную и материальную помощь).
https://www.wiley-vch.de/en/areas-interest/humanities-social-sciences/well-being-at-school-978-1-78945-217-4
Helicopter parenting is defined by popular culture as a set of parenting practices characterized by overinvolvement. However, empirical research has not adequately defined the construct, and it is unclear how helicopter parenting may relate to existing parenting behaviors and parenting styles. Participants included 341 caregivers from across the United States who completed a survey about their parenting beliefs and behaviors. Latent class analysis was used to determine combinations of parenting behaviors, and the identified classes of parents were then used to conduct one-way ANOVAs to examine differences in helicopter parenting between the different classes. Results suggest that parents who fit the authoritative parenting profile endorse greater helicopter parenting. Further research needs to be conducted to determine the “tipping point” for when positive parenting practices, which are often associated with positive outcomes, begin to produce negative outcomes.
Introduction
Parental burnout is an underrecognized condition with adverse consequences for parents and children. The objective of this study was to determine the psychometric properties of a new scale, the Working Parent Burnout Scale, and a concurrent one-item assessment.
Method
A cross-sectional survey was conducted. The sample included parents (N = 1,285) living with children < 18 years. Content, face, construct, and predictive validity and reliability were established.
Results
Cronbach α was 0.90 with the elimination of item four on the scale. All factor loadings were > 0.40. The one-factor model was supported by confirmatory factor analysis. The Pearson r correlation was 0.59 for the total score on the original 10-item burnout scale (item 4 excluded) and the one-item assessment.
Discussion
These are the first known scales to measure working parent burnout. By better identifying parental burnout, preventive and interventional approaches can be initiated to enhance parent and child outcomes.
The aim of this study was to explore the types of helicopter parenting among college students, and to examine how the identified types of helicopter parenting are associated with intimacy goals in dating. In order to investigate these purposes, 202 college students were recruited and analyzed. With the use of Mplus 7.4, a latent profile analysis identified latent profiles of helicopter parenting. Additionally, multivariate regression analysis was conducted in order to analyze the links between the types of helicopter parenting and intimacy goals in dating by using SPSS 26.0. The main findings of the study were as follows. Firstly, three helicopter parenting classes were identified: 1) strong decision-making, 2) strong helicopter parenting, 3) weak helicopter parenting. Secondly, college students in the strong helicopter parenting class reported significantly higher levels of intimacy goals in dating than those in the strong decision-making class. On the other hand, no significant connection was identified between the type of 'weak helicopter parenting' and the levels of intimacy goals in dating, referencing the type of 'strong helicopter parenting.' These results indicate that helicopter parenting has a certain number of types in nature, and the control-based parental behavior could have an impact on college students' intimacy goals in dating.
Autonomy – acting volitionally with a sense of choice – is a crucial right for children. Given parents’ pivotal position in their child’s autonomy development, we examined how parental autonomy support and children’s need for autonomy were negotiated and manifested in the context of children’s independent mobility – children’s ability to play, walk or cycle unsupervised. We interviewed 105 Canadian children between 10 and 13-years-old and their parents ( n = 135) to examine child-parents’ negotiation patterns as to children’s independent mobility. Four patterns emerged, varying on parental autonomy support and children’s need/motivation for independent mobility: (1) child/parent dyad wants to increase independent mobility; (2) child only wants to increase independent mobility while parents do not; (3) child does not want to increase independent mobility while parents do; and (4) child/parent dyad does not want to increase independent mobility. Findings illuminate the importance of recognizing children as active and capable agents of change.
Helikopter ebeveynlik aşırı katılımlı bir ebeveynlik biçimidir ve birçok olumlu psikolojik ve davranışsal değişkenle negatif yönde ilişkisi vardır. Bu çalışmada helikopter ebeveynlikle eğitsel değişkenler arasındaki ilişkileri ortaya koymak amaçlanmıştır. Bu çerçevede betimsel alanyazın taraması yöntemi seçilmiştir. Veritabanların taranmasıyla eğitsel değişkenleri araştırmalarının konusu edinmiş 16 makalelik bir örneklem oluşturulmuştur. Betimsel analiz yöntemi kullanılarak bu makaler ölçekleri, benzer ve farklı bulguları ile karşılaştırılmıştır. 16 makalede sekiz farklı ölçeğin kullanıldığı, bu ölçeklerin 5 maddelik tek boyutlu ölçeklerden 39 maddelik dört boyutlu ölçeklere varan çeşitlilik gösterdiği belirlenmiştir. Bu ölçekler helikopter ebeveynliğin diğer ebeveynlik türlerinden ayrıştığını göstermiştir. Örneklemdeki nicel çalışmalarda 12 farklı eğitsel değişken ve helikopter ebeveynlik arasındaki ilişkilerin incelendiği görülmüştür. Helikopter ebeveynliğin popüler basında yer aldığı kadar yaygın olmadığı belirlenmiştir. Ayrıca, helikopter ebeveynlik bir dizi eğitsel değişkenle negatif ilişkiye sahip olsa da, bu durum her zaman tutarlı değildir. Başka bir deyişle, helikopter ebeveynliğin eğitimle ilişkisi net değildir. Helikopter ebeveynlik ölçeklerindeki bolluk bir “jingıl” yanılsamasına sebep olabilir. Alanda, kültürler arası çalışmalara ve farklı yaş gruplarıyla yapılacak çalışmalara ihtiyaç duyulmaktadır.
Through a 48-item questionnaire shared via social media, 546 participants from 47 American States reported on their children’s (ages 0–8) play activities during early social distancing efforts as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used for data analysis. Results from the questionnaire indicate participants took social distancing guidelines seriously by keeping children at home and away from other children during the period of social distancing, thus affecting play behaviours. The study’s findings are significant in that they document some parents’ perspectives of their children’s play during a unique period in American history. The authors discuss implications for parent and child play behaviours including the need for more unstructured play time, realities of parents working from home with children present, and the effects of children having a lack of access to peers to play with for sociodramatic and symbolic play. Recommendations for future research are provided.
İstihdamın mümkün olduğunca üst bir düzeyde gerçekleşmesi ülkede yaşayan insanların refah içerisinde yaşayabilmesinin şartlarından biridir. İşsizlik çoğunlukla tarım toplumundan sanayi toplumuna geçiş ve makineleşmenin artmasıyla açıklanmıştır. Birçok araştırma sonucuna göre yapısal işsizliğin olduğu ifade edildiği ülkemizde bunu giderebilmek için girişimciliği destekler yönde farklı kurum ve projeler kapsamında destekler verilmektedir. Devletin istihdamın yönetimine baktığımızda ilk girişimler on
dokuzuncu yüzyılın ortalarına rastladığı görülmektedir. Bu konunun ülkemizde devlet tarafından ele alınması uluslararası bir zorunluluk biçiminde kurum bazında yönetimi, İkinci Dünya Savaşı sonuna denk gelmektedir. 1947 yılında kurulan İş ve İşçi Bulma Kurumu bunlardan ilkidir. Kurum 1990’lı ve 2000’li yıllarda iki farklı düzenleme ile kendisini yeni gelişmelere ayak uydurarak varlığını sürdürmektedir.
Planlı kalkınma dönemiyle birlikte Devlet Planlama Teşkilatı ve bu nedenle kamudaki istihdam yapısının oluşturulması için Devlet Personel Dairesi kurulmuştur. Kamuda idari ve mali olarak özerk kurulan kurum yapısı uzun bir müddet sayılan işlevleri yapabilecek kaynakları bulunmadan çalışmıştır.
1984 yılında Devlet Personel Başkanlığı adını alarak Başbakanlığa bağlanan kurum, doksanlı yıllarda işlevini yapamadığı yönünde eleştirilmeye başlanmıştı. Nihayetinde 2019 yılında Çalışma Bakanlığı’na
devredilerek ortadan kaldırılmıştır. Aynı yıl istihdamın yönetilebilmesi için Cumhurbaşkanlığı İnsan Kaynakları Ofisi kurulmuştur. 1 Nolu Cumhurbaşkanlığı Teşkilatı Hakkında Cumhurbaşkanlığı Kararnamesi’nde idari ve mali özerkliğe sahip Dijital Dönüşüm Ofisi, Finans Ofisi ve Yatırım Ofisi ile
benzer biçimde oluşturulmuş bir kurumdur. Bu yapılanmayla sorunları bürokratik yapılanmaya takılmadan çözebilecek, ihtisasa özgü durumuyla ve merkezi devlet yapılanmasına yakın bir karar alma yapısına sahiptir. Bu durum istihdam yönetimine önem verildiğine dair bir duruştur. İşsizliğin neoliberal politikaların uygulanmaya başladığı 1980’li yıllarla beraber büyümeyi izlemeyerek her geçen yıl artarak geldiği bilinmektedir. Ofis insan kaynağını envanteri oluşturarak, bu kaynağı ihtiyaç duyulan alanlara uygun bir biçimde yönlendirme ve geliştirmeyi hedeflemektedir. Kamudaki istihdamda liyakat ve
yetkinliğin artırılması için gerekli olan projelerin üretilmesine yönelik çalışmalar yapacaktır. Devlet Personel Dairesi’nin geçmişteki işlevlerine talip gözükmektedir. Özel yeteneklerin keşfini sağlayarak yetenek yöneteceği topyekûn bir insan kaynağı seferberliği yanında özel yeteneklere ilerleme imkanı
sağlayacağı ifade edilmektedir.
Çalışmada bu kurumların tarihi, yaptıkları faaliyetler, işsizlik ve istihdam üzerine etkileri mercek altına alınmaya çalışılmıştır. Kurumun yasada sayılan işlevleri henüz görünür değildir. Buradan hareketle merkezi bir anlayışla kurulan Cumhurbaşkanlığı İnsan Kaynakları Ofisi’nin çalışmalarının istihdam üzerindeki olası etkileri mevzuata dayalı varsayımlar üzerinden bir çıkarsamaya gidilerek yapılmaya çalışılmıştır.
Background:
Parent involvement in school is a consistent predictor of educational success. However, research has been inconsistent in addressing how parent involvement ought to be defined and measured, which has led to varied findings across schools and educational systems.
Aims:
Attending to the multidimensionality of the construct, this study adopted a person-centred approach to identify subpopulations of school-based parent involvement. Subsequently, profile differences were investigated in relation to student engagement and three antecedent variables (gender, socio-economic status, and authoritative parenting).
Sample:
Data were obtained from primary (10-year old; N = 4,284) and secondary (14-year old; N = 3,346) school students in Singapore.
Methods:
Latent profile analysis was conducted on student-rated surveys of multiple parent involvement behaviours in school and their perceptions. Subsequently, the manual BCH method was employed to concurrently model covariates and outcomes on the latent profile model. Pairwise comparisons between profiles were examined for statistical significance.
Results:
Consistent across both cohorts, four distinct profiles emerged that revealed high, moderate, selective, and low parent involvement patterns. High parent involvement reflected high ratings across multiple activities, combined with positive perceptions of parental involvement. These profiles differed significantly in terms of their antecedent characteristics, particularly, authoritative parenting, and in relation to their impact on student engagement.
Conclusion:
Results from this study clarify relations between multi-faceted dimensions of parent involvement in school. Additionally, there is a case for continued school-family partnerships among secondary students as students remain academically engaged when parents are involved in school and students relate positively to their involvement.
Academic scholarship and public discourse about children’s digital media use often invokes concepts such as ‘screen time’ that place the locus of responsibility on individual users and families rather than on designers creating digital environments. In this vision article, we argue that research, design, and policy frameworks that assume individual responsibility contribute to intensive parenting messaging about children’s media use, are less likely than systemic approaches to achieve population-level change, and produce inequities in children’s access to positive, child-centered media. Platforms (e.g., app marketplaces, video streaming services) act as entry points for children’s use of digital spaces, and thus are strong determinants of children’s experiences. As such, platforms are an ideal point of intervention for systemic change and have the potential to create equitable and child-centered digital environments at an ecosystem level. We contend that policies that encourage platforms to establish child-centered design as the default user interface will both create better experiences for children and relieve pressure on parents as gatekeepers. Finally, we review the types of research questions that could examine how to measure and optimize platforms for their impact on child wellbeing and outline steps researchers can take to provide evidence-based guidance to industry about designing ecosystems for children’s best interests.
The objectives of this study were (1) to examine the current states of distance learning and the home environment, (2) to classify
groups according to the parents’ perceptions on daily life changes due to school closures, and (3) to identify the differences in educational support by groups. For these purposes, the study made use of 1,432 parents’ survey data. The results indicated that distance
learning had been conducted in a variety of teaching methods, and the physical home environment was well equipped. As a result
of LPA, there were four groups classified according to parents’ perceptions: stressed parents (14.6%), adaptive parents (32.5%), intensive parents (29.3%), and anxious parents (23.5%). There were significant differences in parents’ educational support by groups
as a result of MANCOVA, controlling the impact of sociodemographic variables. Intensive parents, specifically, tend to highly perceive both positive and negative changes and actively support their child’s distance learning. Based on these results, it was found
that parents are making efforts to adapt to the COVID-19 pandemic in different ways under psycho-social pressure, and it was
verified that parents’ perceptions could affect their children’s distance learning. Therefore, it was suggested to conduct future research
on parental support policies in order to enhance the effectiveness of distance learning.
Attitudes about parenting are derived from early socialization of gender role norms and often include intensive parenting beliefs, which give mothers an outsized role in parenting. This study examined the differences in intensive parenting beliefs among cisgender mothers and fathers during the United States COVID-19 response. Data from a sample of 1048 mothers and fathers were collected during March and April 2020 to understand parenting beliefs. Results indicated that some demographic factors, including gender and ethnicity, impact intensive parenting beliefs. Additionally, the number of COVID-19 cases in a state, along with school closure length, was related to intensive parenting beliefs.
Supplementary information:
The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12144-021-01605-x.
Conflict and tension in the couple relationship transfers to the parent-child relationship, amplifying the stress parents experience while parenting young children. Pinpointing moderating and individual-level factors that exist in this spillover process may identify both couple and individual areas where spillover might be mitigated. This study used a within-couple approach to test for gender differences in marital-to-parenting spillover and to examine the moderating roles of gender, parental identity, and the emotion regulation strategy cognitive reappraisal in the linkages between marital-parenting spillover. From a larger study of parenting experiences, 96 mother-father couples of young children (mean age = 3.22 years) reported on measures of marital satisfaction, cognitive reappraisal, parenting identity, and parenting stress. Using path model comparisons, we found more similarities than differences between mothers and fathers and, contrary to the hypothesis, that mothers experienced greater spillover between marital satisfaction and parental distress than fathers. Results differed between outcome measures, suggesting that parents experience more spillover from marital satisfaction to parenting in the context of parental distress than in dysfunctional interactions with their child. Importantly, we found that higher parental identity strengthened marital-to-parenting spillover for mothers in contrast to expectations based on theoretical assumptions, whereas cognitive reappraisal weakened marital-to-parenting spillover, supporting the broader emotion regulation literature. These results signify the importance of situating the marriage to parenting transfer in the context of affective experiences and intensified parenting expectations, wherein flexibility in role identity may help alleviate parenting stress.
With some exceptions, children’s lives in the United States and other developed nations have become more intensely surveilled over the last 30 years, thanks to the intensification of parenting, the spread of surveillance technology in schools, and increased restrictions upon children’s use of public space. Yet childhood scholars argue that children’s autonomy and self‐efficacy are important not just as basic human rights, but also because they help children improve coping skills, learn better, and, and become trusting and trustworthy. Existing scholarship, then, might predict that trends of heightened surveillance negatively impact children’s well‐being. Instead, contemporary children are doing better, as measures of abuse and assault, physical health, educational achievement, and other outcomes attest. Given childhood studies scholarship, how do we understand children’s decreasing autonomy and increasing well‐being? We call this puzzle the “paradox of constrained well‐being.” We explore four possible explanations: stratification of childhood, safe bondage/risky freedom, mental‐health‐as‐SOS‐signal, and mental‐health‐as‐harbinger. Presenting evidence, we evaluate the capacity of each to explain the paradox of constrained well‐being. We conclude by suggesting all four have considerable purchase, and that our penchant for easily measurable and reportable metrics blinds us to the costs of constraints on children’s agency, liberty, mental health, and equity.
There is increasing awareness that how young people spend their time outside of school has consequences for their development.
As part of this awareness, interest in organized activities—extracurricular activities, after-school programs, and youth organizations—has grown markedly. On balance, the bulk of research on organized activities has shown positive consequences of participation for academic, educational, social, civic, and physical development. This fact, coupled with the safety and supervision provided by organized activities for youth with working parents, has fueled initiatives at the local, state, and Federal levels to expand opportunities for participation.
In seeming opposition to these initiatives, there exists concern that participating in organized activities has become excessive for
youth. This “over-scheduling” is thought to result from pressure from adults (parents, coaches, teachers) to achieve and attain long-term
educational and career goals. These external pressures, along with the activity-related time commitment, are believed to contribute to
poor psychosocial adjustment for youth and to undermine their relationships with parents. Because the implication is that increasing
amounts of organized activity participation will be harmful to youth and family functioning, attention from scientists, practitioners, and
policymakers is warranted.
To evaluate these two somewhat different perspectives, we review two types of evidence: evidence from published studies focused
on regional, historical, or limited samples and evidence from a very recent nationally representative sample of America’s 5- to 18-year-
olds that includes both time use data and information on a wide range of indicators of development. The main fi ndings across studies
are as follows:
(1) The primary motivations for participation in organized activities are intrinsic (e.g., excitement and enjoyment, to build com-
petencies, and to affi liate with peers and activity leaders). Pressures from adults or educational/career goals are seldom given as reasons
for participation;
(2) American youth average about 5 hours/week participating in organized activities. At any given time, roughly 40% of young
people in the US do not participate in organized activities and those who do typically spend less than 10 hours/week participating. Many
alternative leisure activities (e.g., educational activities, playing games, watching television) consume as much or considerably more
time. However, a very small subgroup of youth (between 3 and 6 percent) spends 20 or more hours/week participating;
(3) There is quite consistent and strong evidence of a positive association between participating in organized activities and a va-
riety of indicators of positive development: those youth who participate demonstrate healthier functioning on such indicators ranging from academic achievement, school completion, post secondary educational attainment, psychological adjustment, and lowered rates of smoking and drug use, to the quantity and quality of interactions with their parents. As the amount of participation in organized activities increases, the evidence suggests that the associated benefits of participation are observed either to accrue across the full range of activities or weekly hours of participation considered or to level off at relatively high amounts of participation; and
(4) Concerning the well-being of youth with very high levels of involvement in organized activity participation (e.g., 20 or more
hours/week), indicators of adjustment tended either to be more positive than, or similar to, youth who did not participate. Only a very
few indicators of well-being have been shown to decline to a level significantly lower than youth who did not participate in organized
activities.
In sum, given the very limited empirical support for the over-scheduling hypothesis and the quite consistent support for the positive youth development perspective, we recommend that the recent efforts to expand opportunities for organized activity participation should stay the course. For the vast majority of young people, participation is associated with positive developmental outcomes. Of greater concern than the over-scheduling of youth in organized activities is the fact that many youth do not participate at all. The well-being of youth who do not participate in organized activities is reliably less positive compared to youth who do participate.
Overparenting involves the application of developmentally inappropriate levels of parental directiveness, tangible assistance, problem-solving, monitoring, and involvement into the lives of children. Based on theories of family enmeshment, effective parenting, and personality development, this parenting behavior was hypothesized to be associated with negative traits in parents (i.e., anxiety and regret) as well as in young adult children (i.e., narcissism, poor coping styles, anxiety, and stress). Participants were 653 parent-adult child dyads from 32 of the 50 United States who completed measures of overparenting and maladaptive traits. A latent variables analysis showed that parental anxiety was positively associated with overparenting, and that parental regret had an indirect effect on overparenting through greater anxiety. In adult children, overparenting was associated with higher levels of narcissism and more ineffective coping skills (e.g., internalizing, distancing). These ineffective coping skills were associated with greater anxiety and stress in young adult children.
Aristotle proposed that to achieve happiness and success, people should cultivate virtues at mean or intermediate levels between deficiencies and excesses. In stark contrast to this assertion that virtues have costs at high levels, a wealth of psychological research has focused on demonstrating the well-being and performance benefits of positive traits, states, and experiences. This focus has obscured the prevalence and importance of nonmonotonic inverted-U-shaped effects, whereby positive phenomena reach inflection points at which their effects turn negative. We trace the evidence for nonmonotonic effects in psychology and provide recommendations for conceptual and empirical progress. We conclude that for psychology in general and positive psychology in particular, Aristotle's idea of the mean may serve as a useful guide for developing both a descriptive and a prescriptive account of happiness and success.
© The Author(s) 2011.
Infants differ substantially in their rates of language growth, and slow growth predicts later academic difficulties. In this study, we explored how the amount of speech directed to infants in Spanish-speaking families low in socioeconomic status influenced the development of children's skill in real-time language processing and vocabulary learning. All-day recordings of parent-infant interactions at home revealed striking variability among families in how much speech caregivers addressed to their child. Infants who experienced more child-directed speech became more efficient in processing familiar words in real time and had larger expressive vocabularies by the age of 24 months, although speech simply overheard by the child was unrelated to vocabulary outcomes. Mediation analyses showed that the effect of child-directed speech on expressive vocabulary was explained by infants' language-processing efficiency, which suggests that richer language experience strengthens processing skills that facilitate language growth.
The past 20 to 30 years has seen an increase in the time children and adolescents spend in structured activities outside of the regular school day. This has resulted in a significant reduction in the amount of free time children and youth have for leisure time activities. While much discussion has been given to this topic in the popular press, little systematic research has been conducted addressing this issue. The purpose of this study was to identify whether there is a relationship between the number of regularly scheduled activities in which adolescents are involved, the amount of time adolescents spend participating in these activities, and self-reports of anxiety, depression, and physical complaints. Results indicated that the greater the amount of time students reported participating in activities both at the time of the study and for the entire year, the higher their self-reported level of anxiety tended to be. Similar results were not observed for depression or somatization.
"Tiger parenting," as described by Chua (2011), has put parenting in Asian American families in the spotlight. The current study identified parenting profiles in Chinese American families and explored their effects on adolescent adjustment. In a three-wave longitudinal design spanning eight years, from early adolescence to emerging adulthood, adolescents (54% female), fathers and mothers from 444 Chinese American families reported on eight parenting dimensions (e.g., warmth and shaming) and six developmental outcomes (e.g., GPA and academic pressure). Latent profile analyses on the eight parenting dimensions demonstrated four parenting profiles: supportive, tiger, easygoing, and harsh parenting. Over time, the percentage of parents classified as tiger parents decreased among mothers but increased among fathers. Path analyses showed that the supportive parenting profile, which was the most common, was associated with the best developmental outcomes, followed by easygoing parenting, tiger parenting, and harsh parenting. Compared with the supportive parenting profile, a tiger parenting profile was associated with lower GPA and educational attainment, as well as less of a sense of family obligation; it was also associated with more academic pressure, more depressive symptoms and a greater sense of alienation. The current study suggests that, contrary to the common perception, tiger parenting is not the most typical parenting profile in Chinese American families, nor does it lead to optimal adjustment among Chinese American adolescents.
This research revealed both similarities and striking differences in early language proficiency among infants from a broad range of advantaged and disadvantaged families. English-learning infants (n = 48) were followed longitudinally from 18 to 24 months, using real-time measures of spoken language processing. The first goal was to track developmental changes in processing efficiency in relation to vocabulary learning in this diverse sample. The second goal was to examine differences in these crucial aspects of early language development in relation to family socioeconomic status (SES). The most important findings were that significant disparities in vocabulary and language processing efficiency were already evident at 18 months between infants from higher- and lower-SES families, and by 24 months there was a 6-month gap between SES groups in processing skills critical to language development.
a b s t r a c t Updating a previous systematic review of the literature, this review summarizes the literature over the last 5 years on the relationship between school-based extracurricular activity participation and academic achievement, substance use, sexual activity, psychologi-cal adjustment, and delinquency. The review also considers medi-ators and moderators of these relationships. This review also discusses recent advances in activity research including participa-tion measurement (intensity, breadth, and duration), person-cen-tered approaches, and an exploration of the overscheduling hypothesis. The review reveals a mixed picture of the relationship between activity participation and these adolescent developmental outcomes. A call for continued exploration into measurement issues, analysis approaches, outcome measures, and causal models of activities and adolescent functioning is made. Published by Elsevier Inc.
This study assessed three dimensions of parent style, autonomy support, involvement, and provision of structure in 64 mothers and 50 fathers of elementary-school children in Grades 3–6, using a structured interview. Construct validity data for the interview ratings suggested that the three parent dimensions were reliable, relatively independent, and correlated with other parent measures in hypothesized ways. Aspects of children's self-regulation and competence were measured through children's reports, teacher ratings, and objective indices. Parental autonomy support was positively related to children's self-reports of autonomous self-regulation, teacher-rated competence and adjustment, and school grades and achievement. Maternal involvement was related to achievement, teacher-rated competence, and some aspects of behavioral adjustment, but no significant relations were obtained for father involvement. The structure dimension was primarily related to children's control understanding. Results are discussed in terms of the motivational impact of the parent on school competence and adjustment and in terms of transactional models of influence. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Presents findings of a task force established by the American Psychological Association to report on the issues of what is known and unknown about intelligence. Significant conceptualizations of intelligence are reviewed, including the psychometric approach, theories of multiple forms of intelligence, cultural variations, theories of developmental progressions, and biological approaches. The meaning of intelligence test scores, what they predict, and how well they predict intelligence is discussed. Genetic factors and intelligence, focusing on individual differences, conventional IQ tests, and other tests intended to measure cognitive ability, are described. Environmental factors such as social and biological variables are discussed, and sex and ethnic group differences are addressed. Recommendations for future research are presented. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Can interventions meaningfully increase intelligence? If so, how? The Database of Raising Intelligence is a continuously updated compendium of randomized controlled trials that were designed to increase intelligence. In this article, the authors examine nearly every available intervention involving children from birth to kindergarten, using meta-analytic procedures when more than 3 studies tested similar methods and reviewing interventions when too few were available for meta-analysis. This yielded 4 meta-analyses on the effects of dietary supplementation to pregnant mothers and neonates, early educational interventions, interactive reading, and sending a child to preschool. All 4 meta-analyses yielded significant results: Supplementing infants with long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids, enrolling children in early educational interventions, reading to children in an interactive manner, and sending children to preschool all raise the intelligence of young children.
© The Author(s) 2013.
Presents findings of a task force established by the American Psychological Association to report on the issues of what is known and unknown about intelligence. Significant conceptualizations of intelligence are reviewed, including the psychometric approach, theories of multiple forms of intelligence, cultural variations, theories of developmental progressions, and biological approaches. The meaning of intelligence test scores, what they predict, and how well they predict intelligence is discussed. Genetic factors and intelligence, focusing on individual differences, conventional IQ tests, and other tests intended to measure cognitive ability, are described. Environmental factors such as social and biological variables are discussed, and sex and ethnic group differences are addressed. Recommendations for future research are presented.
Using a ''subjectivist'' approach to the assessment of happiness, a new 4-item measure of global subjective happiness was developed and validated in 14 studies with a total of 2 732 participants. Data was collected in the United States from students on two college campuses and one high school campus, from community adults in two California cities, and from older adults. Students and community adults in Moscow, Russia also participated in this research. Results indicated that the Subjective Happiness Scale has high internal consistency, which was found to be stable across samples. Test-retest and self-peer correlations suggested good to excellent reliability, and construct validation studies of convergent and discriminant validity confirmed the use of this scale to measure the construct of subjective happiness. The rationale for developing a new measure of happiness, as well as advantages of this scale, are discussed.
This study tested associations between problems in parent-youth relationships and problems with alcohol use among college
students (N = 1592) using structural equation modeling. Hypotheses were that relationships between both substance-specific parenting
factors (parental drinking) and non-substance-specific parenting factors (parental intrusive control and lack of support)
and college student drinking behaviors would be mediated by the developmental tasks of managing difficult emotions and establishing
a mature psychosocial identity. Sex, ethnicity and age were entered as control variables in the analyses and were tested for
moderating effects. Results showed that the unconstrained model for males and females differed significantly from a model
in which the two groups were constrained to be similar. Among young women, emotion regulation and psychosocial maturity were
partial mediators of the effects of parent problems on alcohol use problems. Among young men, parent problems were indirectly
related to alcohol use problems through emotion regulation. Implications for alcohol use prevention activities on college
campuses are discussed.
The purpose of the current study was to establish a measure of helicopter parenting that was distinct from other forms of parental control, and to examine parental and behavioral correlates of helicopter parenting. Participants included 438 undergraduate students from four universities in the United States (M(age) = 19.65, SD = 2.00, range = 18-29; 320 women, 118 men), and at least one of their parents. Analyses revealed that helicopter parenting loaded on a separate factor from both behavioral and psychological control, and that helicopter parenting was positively associated with behavioral and psychological control, but not at levels suggesting complete overlap. Results also revealed that helicopter parenting was positively associated with parental involvement and with other positive aspects of the parent-child relationship; but negatively associated with parental autonomy granting and school engagement. Discussion focuses on the implications of helicopter parenting for healthy development during emerging adulthood.
This study examined a process model of relations among children's perceptions of their parents, their motivation, and their performance in school. Children's perceptions of their parents on dimensions of autonomy support and involvement were measured with the new children's perceptions of parents scale. Three motivation variables—control understanding, perceived competence, and perceived autonomy—were hypothesized to mediate between children's perceptions of their parents and their school performance. Analyses indicated that perceived maternal autonomy support and involvement were positively associated with perceived competence, control understanding, and perceptions of autonomy. Perceived paternal autonomy support and involvement were related to perceived competence and autonomy. In turn, the 3 motivation variables, referred to as inner resources, predicted children's performance. Structural equation modeling generally supported the mediational model.
Although adolescents often participate in multiple extracurricular activities, little research has examined how the breadth of activities in which an adolescent is involved relates to school-related affect and academic performance. Relying on a large, multi-ethnic sample (N = 864; 55.9% female), the current study investigated linear and non-linear relationships of 11th grade activity participation in four activity domains (academic/leadership groups, arts activities, clubs, and sports) to adolescents' sense of belonging at school, academic engagement, and grade point average, contemporarily and in 12th grade. Results of multiple regression models revealed curvilinear relationships for sense of belonging at school in 11th and 12th grade, grade point average in 11th grade, and academic engagement in 12th grade. Adolescents who were moderately involved (i.e., in two domains) reported a greater sense of belonging at school in 11th and 12th grade, a higher grade point average in 11th grade, and greater academic engagement in 12th grade, relative to those who were more or less involved. Furthermore, adolescents' sense of belonging at school in 11th grade mediated the relationship of domain participation in 11th grade to academic engagement in 12th grade. This study suggests that involvement in a moderate number of activity domains promotes positive school-related affect and greater academic performance. School policy implications and recommendations are discussed.
Data from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) Study of Early Childcare and Youth Development (N = 1,364) were used to investigate children's trajectories of academic and social development across 1st, 3rd, and 5th grades. Hierarchical linear modeling was used to examine within- and between-child associations among maternal and teacher reports of parent involvement and children's standardized achievement scores, social skills, and problem behaviors. Findings suggest that within-child improvements in parent involvement predict declines in problem behaviors and improvements in social skills but do not predict changes in achievement. Between-child analyses demonstrated that children with highly involved parents had enhanced social functioning and fewer behavior problems. Similar patterns of findings emerged for teacher and parent reports of parent involvement. Implications for policy and practice are discussed.
The purpose of the current study was to explore how mother's and father's connectedness and involvement individually and collectively influence the lives of their children. Specifically, we asked how fathers' and mothers' parent-child connectedness and behavioral involvement influenced both problem behaviors (externalizing and internalizing behaviors) and positive outcomes (prosocial behaviors and hope) during early adolescence. Data for this study were taken from the Flourishing Families Project, from which 349 mothers and fathers were selected, along with their early adolescent child (mean age = 11.23 years, SD = .96). Hierarchical regression analyses revealed (even after controlling for child age, gender, and self-regulation) that mothers' and fathers' contributions differed, primarily as a function of child outcome. Namely, father (but not mother) connectedness and involvement were negatively related to adolescents' internalizing and externalizing behaviors, whereas mother (but not father) connectedness and involvement were positively related to adolescents' prosocial behaviors and hope. We also found that when one parent's involvement was low (for whatever reason), the other parent's involvement made a significant and important contribution to the child's well-being, particularly in the area of internalizing behaviors.
Aristotle proposed that to achieve happiness and success, people should cultivate virtues at mean or intermediate levels between deficiencies and excesses. In stark contrast to this assertion that virtues have costs at high levels, a wealth of psychological research has focused on demonstrating the well-being and performance benefits of positive traits, states, and experiences. This focus has obscured the prevalence and importance of nonmonotonic inverted-U-shaped effects, whereby positive phenomena reach inflection points at which their effects turn negative. We trace the evidence for nonmonotonic effects in psychology and provide recommendations for conceptual and empirical progress. We conclude that for psychology in general and positive psychology in particular, Aristotle’s idea of the mean may serve as a useful guide for developing both a descriptive and a prescriptive account of happiness and success.
The Child Development Review (CDR) combines parents' and pediatricians' observations to monitor the development and adjustment of infants and young children. The CDR is designed to help answer the parent's question, "How well is my child doing?" and the pediatrician's question, "Is this child developing normally?" The method includes: involving parents systematically in the developmental review process, including the use of a parent questionnaire; systematic professional observation at well-child visits, including the use of a child development chart; and pediatrician-parent discussion of the child's development and community resources for parents and children. The CDR Parent Questionnaire includes six questions and a 26-item symptoms and problems checklist. Various studies have documented the frequencies of various parental concerns and reported symptoms and behavior problems. Some parent-reported problems are associated with placement in early childhood/special education; some of these problems are also predictors of subsequent poor kindergarten performance. Use of the CDR system enhances anticipatory guidance, discussion of parent concerns, and early intervention, while reducing reliance on developmental screening tests.
This study assessed three dimensions of parent style, autonomy support, involvement, and provision of structure in 64 mothers and 50 fathers of elementary-school children in Grades 3-6, using a structured interview. Construct validity data for the interview ratings suggested that the three parent dimensions were reliable, relatively independent, and correlated with other parent measures in hypothesized ways. Aspects of children's self-regulation and competence were measured through children's self-reports, teacher ratings, and objective indices. Parental autonomy support was positively related to children's self-reports of autonomous self-regulation, teacher-rated competence and adjustment, and school grades and achievement. Maternal involvement was related to achievement, teacher-rated competence, and some aspects of behavioral adjustment, but no significant relations were obtained for father involvement. The structure dimension was primarily related to children's control understanding. Results are discussed in terms of the motivational impact of the parent on school competence and adjustment and in terms of transactional models of influence.
What is colloquially referred to as “helicopter parenting” is a form of overparenting in which parents apply overly involved and developmentally inappropriate tactics to their children who are otherwise able to assume adult responsibilities and autonomy. Overparenting is hypothesized to be associated with dysfunctional family processes and negative child outcomes. Predictions were tested on 538 parent-young adult child dyads from locations throughout most of the United States. Parents completed a newly developed measure of overparenting as well as family enmenshment, parenting styles, and parent-child communication scales. Young adult children completed measures of parent-child communication, family satisfaction, entitlement, and several adaptive traits. Results showed that overparenting is associated with lower quality parent-child communication and has an indirect effect on lower family satisfaction. Overparenting was also a significant predictor of young adult child entitlement, although it was not related to any of the adaptive traits measured in young adult children.
What is colloquially referred to as "helicopter parenting" is a form of overparenting in which parents apply overly involved and developmentally inappropriate tactics to their children who are otherwise able to assume adult responsibilities and autonomy. Overparenting is hypothesized to be associated with dysfunctional family processes and negative child outcomes. Predictions were tested on 538 parent-young adult child dyads from locations throughout most of the United States. Parents completed a newly developed measure of overparenting as well as family enmenshment, parenting styles, and parent-child communication scales. Young adult children completed measures of parent-child communication, family satisfaction, entitlement, and several adaptive traits. Results showed that overparenting is associated with lower quality parent-child communication and has an indirect effect on lower family satisfaction. Overparenting was also a significant predictor of young adult child entitlement, although it was not related to any of the adaptive traits measured in young adult children.
Parental involvement is related to many positive child outcomes, but if not developmentally appropriate, it can be associated with higher levels of child anxiety and depression. Few studies have examined the effects of over-controlling parenting, or “helicopter parenting,” in college students. Some studies have found that college students of over-controlling parents report feeling less satisfied with family life and have lower levels of psychological well-being. This study examined self-determination theory as the potential underlying mechanism explaining this relationship. College students (N = 297) completed measures of helicopter parenting, autonomy supportive parenting, depression, anxiety, satisfaction with life, and basic psychological needs satisfaction. Students who reported having over-controlling parents reported significantly higher levels of depression and less satisfaction with life. Furthermore, the negative effects of helicopter parenting on college students’ well-being were largely explained by the perceived violation of students’ basic psychological needs for autonomy and competence.
Intensive mothering (IM) attitudes have been considered the dominant discourse of motherhood, but have only been assessed qualitatively The goal of this study was to develop a quantitative scale to assess these ideologies, their construct validity, and their relationship to relevant constructs (i.e., work status and division of household labor). An on-line questionnaire was given to 595 mothers asking 56 questions assessing different aspects of IM attitudes as well as several validation measures. An Exploratory Factor Analysis on 315 randomly selected mothers yielded a 5 factor solution. A Confirmatory Factor Analysis on the remaining 280 mothers demonstrated good fit. The five factors expressed the ideas that (1) women are inherently better at parenting than men (Essentialism), (2) parenting should be fulfilling (Fulfillment), (3) children should be cognitively stimulated by parents (Stimulation), (4) mothering is difficult (Challenging), and (5) parents should prioritize the needs of the child (Child-Centered). Scales had adequate reliability and construct validity compared to the Parental Investment in the Child questionnaire, the Parenting Sense of Competence Scale, and Beliefs about Maternal Employment. The Essentialism, Fulfillment, and Challenging scales were positively related to having more responsibility for child care and household chores. Stay-at-home mothers had higher scores on Essentialism and lower scores on Stimulation than both part-time and full-time working mothers supporting the notion that both working and non-working mothers have intensive parenting ideologies that are manifested in different ways.
Though people often report wanting to have children because they think it will make them happier, much research suggests that parenting is associated with decreased well-being. Other studies have found that parenting is related to increased life satisfaction. The goal of this study was to provide insight into this paradox by investigating the relationship between a specific way of parenting, intensive parenting, and maternal mental health. An online survey was completed by 181 mothers with children ages 5 and under. Intensive mothering beliefs correlated with several negative mental health outcomes. Controlling for perceived family social support, the belief that women are the essential parent was related to lower life satisfaction and believing that parenting is challenging was related to greater depression and stress. The results of this study suggest that aspects of intensive mothering beliefs are detrimental to women’s mental health. It may not be parenting per se, but specific and particularly intensive ways of parenting, that relate to negative mental health outcomes.
Behaviour problems in Romanian orphans adopted to Canada were examined through parents’ interview reports of specific problems, and children’s scores on the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) (Achenbach, Edelbrock, & Howell, 1987) completed by their parents. Three groups of children were studied. Romanian orphanage (RO) children had spent at least 8 months in a Romanian orphanage. Parents’ reports of RO children’s problems were compared to parent reports from 2 comparison groups: (1) Canadian-born children (CB) who were not adopted and never institutionalised; and (2) children who would have gone to a Romanian orphanage had they not been adopted before 4 months of age (Romanian Comparison: RC). RO children scored higher than CB and RC children for Total problems and Internalizing problems on the CBCL. No significant differences were found for any group comparison on Externalizing problems. CBCL scores were positively correlated with RO children’s total time in orphanage. According to parent interview, RO children had more eating problems, medical problems, and stereotyped behaviour problems than both CB and RC children. These problems were distinctive ones, rarely if ever being reported for CB or RC children. It is suggested that these distinctive RO problems arise out of a normal developmental base, and reflect either continuations of orphanage behaviours, reactions to stimuli different from those experienced in orphanage, or lack of opportunity for development or learning within the orphanage.
A key goal of much educational policy is to help parents become involved in children’s academic lives. The focus of such efforts, as well as much of the extant research, has generally been on increasing the extent of parents’ involvement. However, factors beyond the extent of parents’ involvement may be of import. In this article, the case is made that consideration of the how, whom, and why of parents’ involvement in children’s academic lives is critical to maximizing its benefits. Evidence is reviewed indicating that how parents become involved determines in large part the success of their involvement. It is argued as well that parents’ involvement may matter more for some children than for others. The issue of why parents should become involved is also considered. Implications for future research and interventions are discussed.
The trend toward increasingly intensive mothering was accelerated in the 1990s with a focus in child-rearing advice on maximizing children's brain development through ample and appropriate stimulation in the early years. Based on in-depth semi-structured interviews this study examines Canadian mothers' experiences with this advice, and the implications of this for cultural understandings of motherhood and childhood. Mothers in this study did practice intensive mothering aimed at increasing childhood intelligence and accomplishment. Neo-liberal constructions of proper parenthood that emphasize parental responsibility, parental control, risk, and competition interacted with, and affected, mothers' experiences in this regard, as did gender roles and expectations. The processes through which this unfolded are described. Consequences for mothers included increased stress, exhaustion, anxiety and guilt. However, it was in part, the negative consequences of intensive parenting that also prompted many mothers to begin to challenge the exclusively child-centered nature of this advice.
This study examined whether maternal resources of involvement and auton- omy support might buffer children against the negative effects of the transi- tion to junior high. A diverse sample of 60 children, their mothers, and teach- ers participated. Three types of involvement (school, cognitive, and personal) and levels of autonomy support were assessed during both 6th and 7th grades. Children's motivational resources (perceived competence, control understanding, self-regulation) as well as outcomes of self-worth, grades, and adjustment were also assessed at the 2 time periods. Children whose mothers were higher in cognitive and personal involvement in 6th grade de- creased less in perceived competence over the transition relative to those of mothers who were less involved. Children of more autonomy supportive mothers increased less in acting-out and learning problems. Changes in ma- ternal resources were also predictive of changes in motivation and outcomes. The results suggest the importance of the home environment in children's coping with the transition to junior high. There has been much recent attention devoted to how children make the transition from elementary school to junior high school. Such attention has been stimulated by concern that this transition may disrupt children's self-esteem and academic success, and have enduring consequences for children's long-term school trajectories (Eccles, Lord, Roeser, Barber, & Jozefowicz, 1997). Research has generally supported the notion that this
Mothering and motherhood are the subjects of a rapidly expanding body of literature. Considered in this decade review are two predominant streams in this work. One is the theorizing of mothering and motherhood and the other is the empirical study of the mothering experience. Conceptual developments have been propelled particularly by feminist scholarship, including the increasing attention to race and ethnic diversity and practices. The conceptualizations of the ideology of intensive mothering and of maternal practice are among the significant contributions. Study of mothering has focused attention on a wide array of specific topics and relationships among variables, including issues of maternal well-being, maternal satisfaction and distress, and employment.
Although family life has an important impact on children's life chances, the mechanisms through which parents transmit advantages are imperfectly understood. An ethnographic data set of white children and black children approximately 10 years old shows the effects of social class on interactions inside the home. Middle-class parents engage in concerted cultivation by attempting to foster children's talents through organized leisure activities and extensive reasoning. Working-class and poor parents engage in the accomplishment of natural growth, providing the conditions under which children can grow but leaving leisure activities to children themselves. These parents also use directives rather than reasoning. Middle-class children, both white and black, gain an emerging sense of entitlement from their family life. Race had much less impact than social class. Also, differences in a cultural logic of childrearing gave parents and their children differential resources to draw on in their interactions with professionals and other adults outside the home. Middle-class children gained individually insignificant but cumulatively important advantages. Working-class and poor children did not display the same sense of entitlement or advantages. Some areas of family life appeared exempt from the effects of social class, however.
This paper examines examples of women's everyday interactions to explore the ways in which the participants of two all-female groups discursively invoke their roles as mothers through accounts of their daily mothering practices and domestic responsibilities. Qualitative analysis of the data shows a very traditional model of motherhood emerged from the women's conversations. While there were some between group differences in the ways the women negotiated constructions of motherhood, the accounts of domestic life examined here reflected a traditional model of intensive mothering (Hays (199616.
Hays S 1996 The cultural contradictions of motherhood New Haven Yale University Press View all references). The cultural contradictions of motherhood. New Haven: Yale University Press).