Three reasons why parental burnout is more prevalent in individualistic countries: A 36-country study

Abstract

Purpose The prevalence of parental burnout, a condition that has severe consequences for both parents and children, varies dramatically across countries and is highest in Western countries characterized by high individualism. Method In this study, we examined the mediators of the relationship between individualism measured at the country level and parental burnout measured at the individual level in 36 countries (16,059 parents). Results The results revealed three mediating mechanisms, that is, self-discrepancies between socially prescribed and actual parental selves, high agency and self-directed socialization goals, and low parental task sharing, by which individualism leads to an increased risk of burnout among parents. Conclusion The results confirm that the three mediators under consideration are all involved, and that mediation was higher for self-discrepancies between socially prescribed and actual parental selves, then parental task sharing, and lastly self-directed socialization goals. The results provide some important indications of how to prevent parental burnout at the societal level in Western countries.

Profiles of Parental Burnout Around the Globe: Similarities and Differences Across 36 Countries

“…Interestingly, this dimension, which is not present in the model of job burnout, emerged saliently from the testimonies of burned-out parents that were used to conceptualize parental burnout and develop the PBA. Such results are in line with previous studies that have suggested parental perfectionism as a major risk factor for parental burnout (Furutani et al, 2020;Lin et al, 2021;Stȃnculescu et al, 2020), and higher parental goals as a possible mediator between culture and parental burnout (Roskam et al, 2023). Our results also point in this direction.…”

“…We can thus expect that in individualistic cultures, contrast will be a stronger marker of burnout profiles. Testing this prediction will help us gain a deeper understanding of parental burnout and of the previous findings of Roskam et al (2023) regarding the role of individualism.…”