Poster #95 - Job Autonomy, Parenting, and Children’s Achievement

• In Event: Poster Session 14

Abstract

Although a large literature exists examining the consequences of structural aspects of parents’ work (e.g., hours, schedules, income) on children's development, there is less known about how parents’ experiences on the job shape their children’s development (Perry-Jenkins, 2022). The work socialization perspective posits that parents’ experiences at work, such as their sense of self-direction (autonomy) and independence (Kohn & Schooler, 1982) shape their children’s development. Specifically, research has shown that parents who experience greater autonomy at work promote less controlling home environments (Rogers et al., 1991), have better parent-child relations (Roeters et al., 2010), and less parent-adolescent conflict (Wheeler et al., 2011). Perry-Jenkins and colleagues (2020) found that fathers’ and mothers’ experiences of greater job autonomy were associated with less overreactive parenting, which in turn was associated with fewer child behavior problems and greater child adaptive skills. In the current study, we extend this work by examining how parents’ experiences of job autonomy during a child’s first year of life are related to children’s achievement in the first grade through the mediating role of parenting quality.
The study was conducted with a sample of 153 working-class dual-earner couples experiencing the transition to parenthood. Parents’ job autonomy was assessed in the child’s first year of life with the 26-item About Your Job Scale (O’Neil, 1991). Parents’ lax and harsh parenting styles were assessed with the Parenting Scale (Arnold et al., 1993). Finally, the Wechsler Individual Achievement Test- 3rd edition assessed children's achievement as they entered the first grade. Both mothers’ and fathers’ job autonomy and parenting quality were examined using an APIM method using SEM to examine partner and actor mediational effects.
Results revealed that mothers’ job autonomy was not directly related to children’s achievement outcomes in the first grade, however, job autonomy did predict more lax parenting five years later (B = -0.27, SE = 0.12, p = .035), such that more autonomy predicted less lax parenting. Finally, mediation was supported such that mothers’ greater autonomy at work in the first year of a child’s life predicted less lax parenting which in turn predicted higher achievement. levels (B = 1.54, SE = 0.83, p = .065). Fathers’ job autonomy was unrelated to children’s achievement and was not associated with their lax parenting. No results were significant for harsh parenting.
These findings point to how mothers’ experiences on the job during the first year of their child’s development shapes their children’s achievement years later. Specifically, mothers with greater job autonomy had a less lax parenting style five years later, which, in turn, was associated with greater achievement for children in first grade. The non-significant finding for fathers raises questions about different processes that may be occurring. For example, perhaps other work factors, like flexibility or social support matter more for fathers. These findings underscore the importance of creating autonomous and supportive work environments, particularly for early parents.

Authors

• Diego Barcala-Delgado, University of Massachusetts Amherst
  Presenting Author

• Christina Albina Rowley, University of Massachusetts Amherst

• Maureen A Perry-Jenkins, University of Massachusetts Amherst