PREVAILING PARENTING STYLES AMONG PARENTS OF CHILDREN BELOW 15 YEARS OF AGE, IN LAHORE

Abstract

Background: Parenting styles can vary from region to region on account of the influence of customs, traditions, socioeconomic conditions, and the education status of parents. Parenting styles have deep-rooted and long-term ramifications on the identity and behaviors of children as well as a fundamental role in their self-esteem, and consequent success in future life. This study used the Alabama parenting questionnaire to assess the most dominant parenting style among parents of Lahore with children under 15 years of age. Objective: To determine the most prevalent parenting style among the parents of children below 15 years of age in Lahore. It was a cross-sectional study conducted at a tertiary care hospital in Lahore from July 2019 to September 2019. Data was collected using convenient sampling technique. Verbal informed consent of all the participants was obtained. Anonymity and confidentiality were assured. SPSS version 21 was used for data analysis. The participants (n=130) consisted of parents of children below 15 years of age in Lahore. Results: A total of 150 parents were approached, out of whom 130 parents filled the Alabama parenting questionnaire. Five dimensions of parenting were measured; the first was parental involvement which revealed that 81.5% of parents had friendly conversations with their child and 63% of parents helped their children with their homework. The second area explored was positive parenting, this showed that 87.7% of parents showed appreciation when the child had done a good job and 69.2% of parents rewarded their child for obeying/behaving well. In the section on poor monitoring, only 14.6% of parents were unaware of their child’s whereabouts while 27.7% of parents had forgotten about their child when they were busy. In inconsistent discipline, 45.3% of parents had threatened to punish their child but in reality, did not, 64.6% of parents let their child out of punishment early, always, or most of the time. In corporal punishment, 43% of parents had beaten their child when he/she did something wrong, 27% of parents had slapped their child for misbehavior. Conclusion: In conclusion, the majority of parents of children under 15 years of age in Lahore practice the authoritarian parenting method. Parenting styles impact the growth of children into their adult selves, playing a key role in their successes and achievements in life.

Keywords: Parenting styles, Corporal Punishment, Inconsistent Discipline, Positive Parenting