Mothers’ Parenting Practices, Well-being and Father Engagement Among Refugee and Disadvantaged Families in Lebanon

• In Event: 2-120 - Fathers, Family Processes, and Early Child Development: Studies from Lebanon, Pakistan, and Vietnam

Integrative Statement

Parenting programs are increasingly being implemented in low and middle-income countries (LMICs). Most of these programs have been conducted among maternal caregivers and their children. Involving fathers is one of the least well-explored aspects of parenting interventions in LMICs. This study sought to examine the associations between mothers’ perception of their husband’s involvement, her parenting, distress, and well-being, as well as observed mother-child interactions in families growing up in disadvantaged communities and humanitarian settings. We analyzed baseline data from 104 mother-child dyads who participated in a randomized controlled trial aimed at evaluating the impact of the Mother-Child Education Program in Beirut, Lebanon. Mothers self-reported on their distress, well-being, parenting (i.e., harsh disciplinary style and parenting stress), and their husband’s involvement. Mother-child pairs were videotaped while completing a puzzle together and dyadic interactions were coded. The mother’s perception of her husband’s involvement was significantly associated with her well-being and her level of distress. Higher levels of maternal distress, in turn, were associated with higher levels of harsh discipline and more perceived parenting stress (see Figure 1). Higher levels of paternal engagement were associated with more positive affect displayed by the child and better mother-child synchrony during the dyadic interactions (see Table 1). The findings support the notion that fathers may impact markers of maternal mental health and positive mother-child interactions among families living in under-privileged communities or humanitarian settings. Father involvement is an important correlate of mother’s perceived parenting stress that should be considered when designing and implementing parenting programs in LMICs.

Authors

• Sascha Hein, University of Houston
  Presenting Author

• Johanna R Bick, University of Houston
  Non-Presenting Author

• Ghassan Issa, Arab Resource Collective
  Non-Presenting Author

• Lara Aoude, Arab Resource Collective
  Non-Presenting Author

• Cosette Maalouf, Arab Resource Collective
  Non-Presenting Author

• Abir Awar, Arab Resource Collective
  Non-Presenting Author

• Sawsan Nourallah, Arab Resource Collective
  Non-Presenting Author

• Anna L Zonderman, The University of Chicago
  Non-Presenting Author

• Sarah Householder, Yale Child Study Center
  Non-Presenting Author

• Liliya Katsovich, Yale Child Study Center
  Non-Presenting Author

• Kaveh Khoshnood, Yale Child Study Center
  Non-Presenting Author

• Christina Moore, University of Delaware
  Non-Presenting Author

• Rima Salah, Yale Child Study Center
  Non-Presenting Author

• Pia R Britto, UNICEF
  Non-Presenting Author

• James Leckman, The Yale Child Study Center
  Non-Presenting Author

• Liliana Angelica Ponguta, The Yale Child Study Center
  Non-Presenting Author