Comparing the mental health of children with working and non-working parents

Dissertation for Master of Public Psychology (M.A)

Abstract

Mental health is one of the main criteria for evaluating a society and undoubtedly plays a significant role in its efficiency and progress. Purpose: The present study compares the mental health of female students with working and non-working mothers. There are 240 students (120 female students of working mothers and 120 female students of non-working mothers) who were selected by simple random sampling. The research tools are demographic questionnaire and mental health questionnaire scl90. Findings The results of the research showed that - a significant difference between the average score in the factors of physical complaint - individual sensitivity - depression - anxiety - aggression - phobia - paranoia - psychosis - between daughters of working mothers and There are daughters of non-working mothers. The statistical method used is the t-test of independent groups and one-way ANOVA analysis of variance. According to the results, it is found that the value of this average is higher for the daughters of working mothers. And daughters of non-working mothers have better mental health. Keywords: mental health - working mothers and non-working mothers. Introduction: Mental health is one of the basic human needs that plays a vital role in sustainable development. It is intellectual and emotional and so on. Of course, considering the differences between cultures, it is impossible to provide a comprehensive definition of mental health. Despite this, there is a consensus that mental health is more than the absence of mental disorders. Shamlu (1378) defined mental health as a set of factors that play an effective role in preventing the development or progression of cognitive-emotional-behavioral disorders in humans. What is certain is that maintaining mental health is as important as physical health. A person who has mental health can deal with problems rationally while feeling satisfied with life. And be a useful person for society. In other words, people with mental health are able to adapt to the environment while gaining individuality.  With the recognition of the importance of mental health, the number of studies and investigations that are carried out with the aim of etiology or determining the prevalence of mental disorders at the community level is increasing every moment. (Dawood Shah Mohammadi, 1381).

Researches conducted in relation to mental health show that, firstly, various variables such as gender, economic status, physical condition, etc. can affect the level of mental health of people, secondly, any change in the level of mental health of people can leave many and even irreparable effects, and the treatment and elimination of such disorders imposes a lot of costs on the individual in the society. In order to ensure the mental health of the society, obtaining correct information and based on scientific research is one of the most important aspects of success in this field. Being aware of the mental health status of people in the society in order to achieve appropriate patterns for planning in each specific culture is one of the most important ways to achieve the goals of the World Health Organization in the Iranian society. Special attention to the young population, especially students, as the future builders of the society, is one of the basic factors of sustainable and comprehensive development, considering that we are witnessing this issue that in recent years, emotional and psychological problems among students are on the rise. It has been a factor to the extent that abnormal phenomena such as suicide, addiction, delinquency, dropping out of school, etc. have affected the progress of students in the form of new obstacles. In order to deal with the aforementioned problems, scientific and accurate knowledge of the problem based on the findings of studies and researches is impossible. One of the important changes in today's life is the increase in the number of working mothers outside the home. Since 1950, the number of working women in industrialized countries such as the United States has increased by 70% (Clark [1], 1997). According to some theorists, including the theory of ecological systems, the employment of the mother is an ecological factor that has an important effect on the family's behavior of children and the educational style. On the other hand, inflexible work schedules in comparing the responsibilities and duties of working and non-working mothers, there is a possibility of differences in styles.Comparing the responsibilities and duties of working and non-working mothers clearly clarifies the possibility of differences in parenting styles and the emotional and behavioral evolution of working and non-working mothers. The indigenous ecological model of Boronrussia Sai (cited by Daniel [2], 2009) has provided a suitable framework for the relationship between full-time employment of the mother and its subsequent consequences on the child. This theory proposes that the interaction between the person and the environment has complex effects on human development. Based on this stress model, The psychological problems caused by the double work pressure on the mother has caused a decrease in the physical and emotional health of the mother, and such a mother is not able to interact with her child in a wide way and in accordance with the child's development (Leukas [3], 2010).

Because today in Iran, the number of full-time working mothers who spend long hours a day apart from their children is increasing day by day. Therefore, conducting research in this field is of great importance for our changing society.

The aim of the present research is to compare the mental health status of female children with working and non-working mothers. Also, this research can play a significant role in clarifying the previous results, and considering that the simultaneous examination of mothers' employment on children's mental health has received less attention, the results of the research can be the basis for further research in this direction. It is not immune, and it is a danger that threatens humanity. The lack of compromise and the existence of behavior disorders in human societies are very famous and abundant. According to the announcement of the World Health Organization in 2010, more than 450 million people in the world suffer from a mental disorder, every year about 20% of adults experience a mental health problem, nearly a million people commit suicide, and one out of every 4 families has a family member with mental disorders. Mental health has been hidden behind a curtain of stigma and discrimination for a long time, and now the progress of human science has provided a platform to express mental health and address it. On the other hand, we know that mental, physical and social health is vital for all people to build a life path. It is also necessary to improve it in all periods of life. It may be more important to address it. There are unbalanced people living in every class and trade and every group and community. Therefore, there is a risk of contracting mental disorders for all people, including workers, students, doctors and engineers, university professors, etc. In other words, no human being is immune to these diseases. (Shamlo 1380) Mental health means the same feeling of satisfaction and psychological improvement and adequate social compliance with the standards accepted by each society. (Campbell's Psychiatric Culture - Purafkari, 1373) Therefore, considering the living conditions in today's society and considering all the changes that have taken place in it, such as reducing the number of children, leaving part of children's socialization to schools, insufficient income for a family's life, the existence of educated girls who are assigned only the role of mother and wife, the problems of working mothers' lives, the dominance of modern attitudes in society for men and Traditional attitudes in the family have created a complicated situation for women. It certainly endangers the mental health of children. The type of mother's job - the job stability of the mother's working hours and the level of satisfaction she has with her role is considered an important factor in causing anxiety and stress on children (Gottfried [4], 1988).