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. 2022 Aug 23:1-12.
doi: 10.1007/s12144-022-03599-6. Online ahead of print.

Mothers and fathers of pre-school children: a study on parenting stress and child's emotional-behavioral difficulties

Carmen Trumello  1 , Giulia Ballarotto  2 , Piera Ricciardi  1 , Marinella Paciello  3 , Valentina Marino  1 , Mara Morelli  2 , Renata Tambelli  2 , Alessandra Babore  1
Affiliations

Mothers and fathers of pre-school children: a study on parenting stress and child's emotional-behavioral difficulties

Carmen Trumello et al. Curr Psychol. .

Abstract

The present study aimed to analyze the differences between maternal and paternal parenting stress and children's behavioral functioning, as determined by teacher and parent reports. In addition, it sought to evaluate the presence of clusters based on parenting stress and to determine whether perceptions of children's behavioral functioning varied across these clusters. The sample was composed of the parents and teachers of N = 201 children. Parents completed a self-report questionnaire on parenting stress and parents and teachers filled out report-form questionnaires assessing children's emotional and behavioral functioning. The results showed that mothers had higher levels of parenting stress than fathers, and both parents reported more prosocial behavior in children than did teachers. Furthermore, middle stressed parents had children who expressed more prosocial behavior than did parents in other clusters. The findings also showed that parenting stress influenced partners' perceptions of children's behavioral functioning. The multiplicity of child observers facilitated a better understanding of how parenting stress, linked to parent-child interactions, may play an important role in shaping parents' perceptions of their children.

Keywords: Fathers; Parenting stress; Pre-school children; Psychopathological risk.

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Conflict of interest statement

Competing interestsAll authors certify that they have no affiliations with or involvement in any organization or entity with any financial interest or non-financial interest in the subject matter or materials discussed in this manuscript.

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