ERIC Number: EJ1175112
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2018-Apr
Pages: 13
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0012-1649
EISSN: N/A
Trajectories of Parental Engagement in Early Childhood among Dual-Earner Families: Effects on Child Self-Control
Ferreira, Tiago; Cadima, Joana; Matias, Marisa; Vieira, Joana Marina; Leal, Teresa; Verschueren, Karine; Matos, Paula Mena
Developmental Psychology, v54 n4 p731-743 Apr 2018
Parental engagement in positive activities with the child may show significant variation across time, assuming a crucial influence on child development. In dual-earner families, work-family conflict can interfere with parental engagement, with negative consequences for children's behavior. The current study examined the change trajectories of mothers' and fathers' engagement in early childhood, analyzing whether these trajectories are influenced by parents' work-family conflict and whether they predict child behavioral self-control. Data from 156 four-year-old children (67 girls) from dual-earner families were collected annually for 3 consecutive years, through mothers', fathers', and teachers' reports. Results from latent growth curve analysis revealed mothers' engagement remained stable across time while fathers' engagement had a significant increase over time. The negative association between work-family conflict and parental engagement was constant over time both for mothers and fathers. For mothers, initial levels of engagement positively predicted child behavioral self-control. As for fathers, both the initial level and positive change in engagement positively predicted child self-control. These findings emphasize the role of parental engagement in fostering child behavioral adjustment, underlining the need for considering work-family dynamics to understand changes in parental engagement.
Descriptors: Foreign Countries, Parent Participation, Preschool Children, Early Childhood Education, Parent Child Relationship, Child Development, Employed Parents, Self Control, Parent Influence, Family Work Relationship, Child Behavior, Predictor Variables, Data Collection, Mothers, Fathers, Factor Analysis, Questionnaires, Statistical Analysis, Goodness of Fit
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Early Childhood Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Portugal
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A