The relationship between parental stress and parental attitude and problem behavior of preschool children

The primary aim of this research is to examine the relationship between the stress experienced by parents and parenting attitudes and the problem behaviors of children in the preschool period. The study was conducted with 146 parents (128 women, 28 men) who have children aged 3-6 in Ceyhan district of Adana province. A quantitative research design was adopted in the study. The data collection tools used were the Personal Information Form, Parent Stress Scale, Parenting Attitude Scale, and Problem Behavior Scale. The data were analyzed using SPSS software; during the analysis process, independent samples t-test, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), correlation, and multiple linear regression analyses were utilized. The findings obtained from the research showed that the level of parent stress has significant effects on parenting attitudes. As the level of parent stress increased, authoritarian and permissive attitudes were observed to rise, whereas democratic attitudes were seen to decrease. Parental stress, the parent's democratic attitude, and the permissive attitude affect problem behavior in children. While there is a positive relationship between parental stress, parental permissive attitude and problem behavior in children, there is a negative relationship between the parent's democratic attitude and problem behavior. The results of the research reveal that parental stress is a determining factor on the behavioral development of children and that it is important to reduce parental stress and encourage positive parenting approaches in preventing problem behaviors in the preschool period.