A CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY OF PARENTING STYLES AMONG WORKING MOTHERS: TRENDS AND DETERMINANTS

Abstract

Introduction: The development of children is greatly influenced by the parenting styles employed; authoritative, authoritarian, and permissive approaches all have different effects on behavior and self-esteem. This study fills a knowledge gap in Rawalpindi, Pakistan by identifying different parenting styles of working mothers in Rawalpindi.

Objectives: The objectives of this study are to determine how often working women in the Rawalpindi district choose a particular parenting style, to measure the association between type of parenting style and profession, to check the effect of working hours on adoption of parenting style by working women.

Operational Definitions: Parenting styles: Parenting style refers to the approach or manner in which parents interact with their children and make decisions regarding their upbringing. This includes aspects such as disciplinary strategies, communication patterns, and levels of warmth and support.

Working women: Working women are those who engage in employment outside the home, they contribute in the workforce and economy in various professions and have working hours ranging from 6-8 hours/day.

Materials and Methods: This three-month Cross-sectional study in Rawalpindi was specifically focused on working women. 221 participants who agreed to participate were working mothers with children who fulfilled the inclusion criteria using a sample size of 289 and a questionnaire-based survey. The study eliminated women who failed to provide informed consent or who gave insufficient data. SPSS analysis demonstrated proportion of different parenting styles among Rawalpindi's working mother and the association with various demographic factors.

Results: Of the 221 working women in Rawalpindi who responded, 86.45% had an authoritative parenting style, 11.3% had an authoritarian one, and 2.3% had a permissive one. There was a substantial association found between authoritative parenting and living in an urban area, earning more money, becoming a teacher, and having fewer kids. Participants who had divorced were more inclined to be lenient. Parenting methods did not significantly change according to working hours or educational attainment.

Conclusions: The results of this study show that the authoritative parenting style is the most common among working mothers in Rawalpindi. A significant link was found between the number of children, marital status, and family income. Promoting a healthy home environment and better cognitive and mental development for children, stakeholders must create educational programs, counselling services, and recreational facilities in order to promote good parenting.