Stress Experienced by Working and Non-Working Mothers and their Perceived Relationship with their Younger Children
Abstract
This study compares the stress experienced by working and non-working mothers, as well as their perceptions of the relationship they share with their younger child. The relationship between mother’s stress levels and perceptions of the mother-younger child relationship were also studied. The study followed a mixed methods approach. In the first phase which was quantitative, 65 working and 65 non working mothers between the ages of 25-35 years with two children, were administered the Child Parent Relationship Scale (Pianta,1998) and the Perceived Stress Scale (Cohen, et al,1983). In the second phase of the study, which was qualitative, 7 working and 7 non-working mothers from the larger sample were interviewed. Findings indicate that working mothers experienced higher levels of stress and more conflict in their relationship with their younger child. Stress levels of working mothers and conflicts in their mother-younger child relationship were positively correlated. Interviews indicated that working and non-working mothers used similar coping techniques. Non-working mothers perceived their younger child to be more dependent on them than did working mothers. No differences were found in mothers’ perceptions of the positive aspects of their relationship with their
younger child.
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