Effects of Stressors on Parenting Attitudes and Family Functioning in a Primary Prevention Program

Abstract

Effects of Stressors on Parenting Attitudes and Family Functioning in a Primary Prevention Program* Jennifer Peterson and Dale R. Hawley** The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships between social stressors and parental attitudes and family functioning. Data were collected from a non-random sample of 542 parents of newborns at local hospital systems. Significant relationships were found between number of stressors and more functional scores for each of the outcome variables. In addition, females had significantly higher scores than males for each parenting attitude variable. Small but significant relationships were also found between perceptions of economic well-being and social support and each of the parenting and family functioning variables. Implications of the findings for primary prevention programming are discussed. Although it is generally considered a joyfully anticipated event, the birth of a child represents a highly stressful occurrence in the lives of many families. Adjustments related to issues such as family roles, time management, sexuality, financial obligations, and the physical demands of children make the addition of a child an especially challenging transition in a family's career. It is conceivable that stressors brought on by the addition of children could contribute to negative outcomes in parenting and family functioning. One indicator of the stressful conditions associated with parenting is the consistent finding that supports a decline in marital satisfaction after the arrival of children followed by a rise in satisfaction as children begin to leave the nest (Anderson, Russell, & Schumm 1983; Rollins & Feldman, 1970). Cowan and Cowan (1988) note that this drop in satisfaction is not large, though it is significant. However, they also report that new parents increased in their levels of conflict following the birth of their child when compared to a sample of childless couples. Moreover, while the addition of subsequent children may not represent as substantial a change for a family as the arrival of the first child, it does present the possibility of new stressors. Additional financial obligations, sibling rivalry, and increased caregiving demands are a few of the challenges a family faces with the advent of another child. With its new demands, the family's resources may be strained and the family is vulnerable to conflict and overload. The intent here is not to paint an anticipated event for most couples as gloom and doom; rather, it is to acknowledge the potential for increased levels of stress which can present an obstacle to effective parenting and family functioning. This study focuses on the relationship of stressors with family functioning and parenting attitudes using a sample of parents of newborn children participating in a primary prevention program. Family Functioning and Stressors The family stress literature has consistently pointed toward a relationship between the number of stressors experienced by families and their level of functioning. Beginning with the Double ABCX model of family stress (McCubbin & Patterson, 1983) and more recently in his Family Resiliency model (McCubbin & McCubbin, 1993), McCubbin has described the pile-up of stressors as a significant variable which influences how families adapts to stress. Extending Hill's (1958) original ABCX model which posited that family stress levels are an interaction of the stressor event, resources, and perceptions of the event, McCubbin and colleagues have indicated that the pile-up effect of developmental transitions, unresolved previous stressors, and consequences of coping efforts creates a context that exacerbates the impact of a given stressor. A number of studies support this notion. For example, links between accumulated stressors and decreased family functioning have been found for mothers of disabled children (Reddon, McDonald, & Kysela, 1992), families with adolescents leaving home (Anderson, 1990), military wives (Knapp & Newman, 1993), and divorcing men (Plummer & Koch-Hattem, 1986). …

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