Children's and Parents' Perception of Parenting: A Qualitative Study

Abstract

Objectives: The present research was conducted to explore the perception of children and their parents in the Pakistani context and find the discrepancies and consensus in children’s and their parents’ perception of parenting. Methods: It was a multi-informant study, and the data was collected from a sample of 15 intact families (n=15 mothers, n=15 fathers, and n=15 children) belonging from the general population of Bahawalpur using a convenient sampling technique. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews. The data were analysed through thematic analysis and a variety of main themes followed by sub-themes emerged. Results: Parental main themes included: parental knowledge and role identification, appreciations and apprehensions of parents, parenting ideals and practices, expression of parental warmth and affection, factors influencing parenting, parental needs and challenges, intergenerational differences in parenting, parental aspirations for their children, and parenting in the pandemic. As mentioned earlier children’s perception of parenting was also explored through interviews. Main themes included: identification of duties, children's duties, perception of parents, Children identifying parenting practices, children’s response to parenting practices, perception of a healthy parent-child relationship, and children’s perception about parental wrongdoings, perception about parental difficulties, lockdown, and pandemic. Conclusions: The findings revealed that parenting in Pakistan is a mix combination of identified roles. Such as mothers look after children, do home chores. Fathers support financially and take children out. Some mutual roles were also identified as taking care of children and teaching them moral values. Similarly, children also identified the same roles while describing parents.