Mothers' and fathers' perceptions of parenting hassles: Associations with psychological symptoms, nonparenting hassles, and child behavior problems

https://doi.org/10.1016/S0193-3973(96)90033-7Get rights and content

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to specify the relation between parenting hassles, nonparenting hassles, and child behavior problems in 60 nonreferred families and to determine if parenting hassles predict adult psychological symptoms beyond that explained by nonparenting hassles. Sixty families (56 mothers, 40 fathers) completed measures assessing parenting hassles, nonparenting hassles, and symptoms of psychological distress. Mothers and teachers also provided data on frequency of children's behavior problems. Results indicated that child behavior problems and nonparenting stress were both correlated with parenting stress, yet in a majority of multivariate analyses, child behavior problems played a much stronger, predictive role. In addition, teacher reports of child behavior problems were positively associated with both maternal and paternal parenting hassles, indicating that within this sample, parenting stress was associated with hassles pertaining to realistic, as opposed to distorted, perceptions of child behavior problems. Supporting current models of the stress process, nonparenting hassles were significantly associated with symptoms of psychological distress in both mothers and fathers; however, parenting hassles also predicted distress in an additive manner. Implications for future research and application are discussed.

References (36)

  • A. DeLongis et al.

    Relationship of daily hassles, iplifts, and major life events to health status

    Health Psychology

    (1982)
  • A. DeLongis et al.

    The impact of daily stress on health and mood: Psychological and social resources as mediators

    Journal of Personality and Social Psychology

    (1988)
  • L. Derogotis et al.

    The brief symptom inventory: An introductory report

    Psychological Medicine

    (1983)
  • B.P. Dohrenwend et al.

    “Hassles” in the conceptualization and measurement of life stress variables

    American Psychologist

    (1985)
  • B.S. Dohrenwend et al.

    Stressful life events: Their nature and effects

    (1974)
  • D. Dubois et al.

    A prospective study of life stress, social support, and adaptation in early adolescence

    Child Development

    (1992)
  • E. Dubow et al.

    A two-year longitudinal study of stressful life events, social support, and social problem solving skills: Contributions to children's behavioral and academic adjustment

    Child Development

    (1991)
  • J. Dumas

    Indirect influence of maternal social contacts on mother-child interactions: A setting event analysis

    Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology

    (1986)
  • Cited by (63)

    • Predictors of foster parents’ stress and associations to sensitivity in the first year after placement

      2018, Child Abuse and Neglect
      Citation Excerpt :

      Thus, first, foster children’s initial externalizing behavior problems seem to be a risk factor for main caregivers’ initial stress levels (wave 1). There is strong evidence in various samples indicating children’s mental health as associated with parenting stress (e. g., Creasey & Reese, 1996; Farmer et al., 2005; Williford et al., 2007). Handling severe behavior problems might exceed parents’ personal resources and lead to less self-efficacy in parenting.

    • Parenting stress among child welfare involved families: Differences by child placement

      2014, Children and Youth Services Review
      Citation Excerpt :

      There is some debate about whether actual child behavior or parent perception of child behavior is more important when assessing parenting stress. Some research shows that actual child behavior (measured by teacher report) was associated with higher levels of parenting stress rather than parent perception of behavior (Creasey & Reese, 1996). Other studies have found parenting stress to be unrelated to observed parent–child interactions, and related instead to parent perception (Bigras et al., 1996; McPherson et al., 2009).

    • Compulsory residential care: An examination of treatment improvement of individual and family functioning

      2011, Children and Youth Services Review
      Citation Excerpt :

      In addition, improvement in family functioning is associated with a higher likelihood of the adolescent completing the treatment program and going to less restrictive settings following discharge (Sunseri, 2004). Parental stress has also been negatively related to parenting behaviors, in that parents who reported higher levels of stress and perceived their children as problematic showed more often harsh and inconsistent parenting and a lack of warmth and responsiveness (Deater-Deckard & Scarr, 1996; Crawford & Manassis, 2001; Creasey & Reese, 1996; Webster-Stratton, 1990). Although parental stress has been reported to be severe at time of entry into residential care, improvement in parental stress was also found for those parents of adolescents who completed residential care (Killeen & Brady, 2000).

    View all citing articles on Scopus

    This study was supported in part by an Illinois State University Research Grant awarded to Gary Creasey. Portions of this article were presented at the Biennial Meeting for the Society of Research in Child Development, Indianapolis, IN (March 30–April 2, 1995). We thank Stephanie Krug, Kris Lustig, Michael Criss, Kristine Herman, Amber Marconi, Jeff Benware, and Jeff Nieder for their assistance in data collection, coding, and entry, as well as the children, parents, and teachers who participated in this study. We also thank Patricia Jarvis, Laura Berk, and Steven Landau for their helpful comments on an earlier draft.

    View full text