Parental political engagement and self-efficacy: An exploratory study

Abstract

Political engagement (PE) is associated with a sense of empowerment. PE by parents affects children's lives. This study explored parents' attitudes about inclusion of political engagement discussion in well-child care. Because voting is an expression of empowerment, we hypothesized that voting would be related to higher parenting self-efficacy. We administered a brief questionnaire to a convenience sample of parents/guardians at well-child visits at an urban hospital. The questionnaire included 10 Likert scale questions touching on parenting efficacy; beliefs about political engagement; voting behaviors; and demographics. Analysis included descriptive statistics, correlations, and factor analysis. Among the 70 respondents 84% were mothers; 55% self-identified as low income; 62% self-identified as a "person of color." Voting in the 2020 national election was reported by 37%. Most parents (54%) said they would feel comfortable discussing voting with a doctor. Factor analysis identified two main factors: self-efficacy and engagement. Engagement, but not self-efficacy, was related to voting behavior. Contrary to our hypothesis, PE did not appear related to parenting self-efficacy. Notably, more than half of parents felt comfortable discussing PE with their child's doctor. Given the critical role of parents in shaping the world their children inhabit, further exploration could prove to be of value.

Keywords: parenting; political engagement; self‐efficacy.