Parenthood and psychological well-being: Clarifying the role of child age and parent–child relationship quality

Abstract

Although recent scholarship has emphasized the importance of examining the rewards of raising children in understanding variations in psychological consequences of parenthood, empirical research remains focused on the demands of parenthood. Using a sample of parents with children aged 0 to 22 in the National Survey of Families and Households (N = 6,228), this paper examines the association between age of children and parental psychological well-being, focusing on a key element of rewards of parenthood, parental relationship satisfaction with their children, as a mediator of the link. Findings indicate that parents whose oldest child is under age five report higher satisfaction with the relationship with their children, higher self-esteem, higher self-efficacy, and less depression than do parents whose oldest child is school-age or adolescent. When parental satisfaction is taken into account, the differences in self-esteem, self-efficacy, and depression by age of children disappear.

Parent–child discrepancies in the assessment of children’s and adolescents’ happiness

“…Furthermore, our results showed a significant difference in happiness between parents of children and parents of adolescents, contrary to Nomaguchi's (2012) findings. Our results support previous literature which suggests that during adolescence parents may experience higher negative affect and possibly "storm and stress" beliefs (Bornstein et al, 2013;Tsai et al, 2013).…”

“…Nomaguchi (2012) found no differences in the level of happiness of parents of children and parents of adolescents. Therefore, one may expect a potential positivity bias in parents of adolescents as this effect has been found in parents of children (e.g., Durbin & Wilson, 2012).…”

“…Given that previous research with children under the age of 12 has suggested a positivity bias (e.g., Durbin & Wilson, 2012;Lagattuta et al, 2012;Youngstrom et al, 1999), we hypothesized that parents of children aged between 10-11 years would exhibit the same pattern (i.e., overestimation of their children's happiness compared to the children's self-report). However, given that literature on parents' happiness during adolescence has shown mixed results (e.g., levels of happiness in parents of adolescents and children do not differ; Nomaguchi, 2012; levels of happiness in parents of adolescents decrease because of family conflicts and "storm and stress" beliefs; Tsai et al, 2013) we did not pose any hypothesis but instead explored whether parents of adolescents may present a positivity bias (i.e., tendency to overestimate their children's happiness) or a more general egocentric bias (i.e., a tendency to estimate their children's happiness relying on their own levels of happiness).…”

Self-Compassion in Relation to Self-Esteem, Self-Efficacy and Demographical Aspects

“…An estimate of the benefits of parenthood, nevertheless, shows people raising children with ages up to 5 years old to have higher self-esteem, higher self-efficacy and less depression than people raising older children (Nomaguchi, 2012). In the present study, the age of children being raised was not collected, but it seems to be a relevant consideration for, at least, selfesteem levels.…”

“I'll Give You the World”: Socioeconomic Differences in Parental Support of Adult Children

“…In the United States, the age of majority and legal decision is 18, often accompanied by graduation from high school and increased independence. Children under age 18 place legitimate demands on parents’ time (Nomaguchi, 2012; Nomaguchi & Milkie, 2003; Umberson, Pudrovska, & Reczek, 2010). …”