Investigating the effect of family life education (F.L.E) in changing the parenting style of mothers with teenage sons

Dissertation for Master's Degree in Clinical Psychology

Abstract

Adolescents who are brought up with a correct parenting style have better lives and mental states. For this purpose, the present study was conducted with the aim of investigating the effect of family life education (FLE) on the change of parenting style of mothers with teenage sons who are studying in Shahid Dr. Beheshti High School, District 2, Rasht city. The sample of this research is 80 people (40 people in the experimental group and 40 people in the control group) were randomly selected from among the mothers of 258 first year students of this high school and were placed in two experimental and control groups. All mothers completed the Bamrind parenting styles questionnaire before and after the implementation of the independent variable (F.L.E family life training) for the experimental group. For data analysis, descriptive statistics (mean, standard deviation) and inferential statistics of multivariate covariance analysis were used. The results of the research have shown that family life education (F.L.E) is effective in changing the parenting style of mothers with teenage sons, and it has caused an increase in the use of authoritarian parenting style and a decrease in the use of authoritarian and permissive parenting styles in the mothers of the experimental group compared to the mothers in the group.

Key words: family life education (F.L.E), parenting style, mothers, teenagers.

Introduction

The family is a natural and social system that people are dependent on willingly or unwillingly, and it is the first center where a person feels safe and accepted and supported. The structure and psychological atmosphere of the family, which is the overall composition and set of relationships between its members, each of them in a special way affect the individual's performance and behavior in order to face problems and obstacles and psychological pressures, anxieties, fears and other unpleasant stimuli. The occurrence of significant cultural-social-economic changes in the country has caused less communication between teenage children and their parents in recent years compared to two decades ago. Establishing verbal and non-verbal contacts between parents and their children can be a serious obstacle and an important inhibiting factor for the normal development of children's psychological behaviors (Kausian and Kadivar, 1374).

Among the family members, the mother is the first person who has a direct and close relationship with the child not only during the fetal period, but also in this world. Among the many factors of human relationships that are effective in the growth and development of a child, the character of the mother and the way she interacts with the child are of fundamental importance.

The family is the first foundation of the character, values ??and intellectual standards of children, which plays an important role in determining the destiny and lifestyle of a person. The influence of the family as the first and most effective social unit on children is obvious and clear. During the child's development, the environment and family conditions are either a positive factor that provides the grounds for growth or a disruptive and inhibiting factor. In the meantime, the family education system or in other words parenting methods is one of the important factors in the formation of a child's personality. In the 1940s, the process of parenting methods changed in order to make it easier and more flexible. In this decade, parenting theories were influenced by the school of psychoanalysis. A school in which the emotional security of the child and the losses caused by the strong restraint of his natural impulses are emphasized. First, according to the guidelines of Dr. Benjamin Spock[1], parents were advised to follow their natural instincts and use flexible programs that were compatible with both their own needs and the needs of their children. But in the first decade of the 20th century, parenting methods were quite dry and harsh, at that time, parents were advised not to spoil the child by hugging him when he cried, and to feed them according to a fixed schedule (whether they were hungry or not). This method was completely dry and somewhat under the influence of behaviorism school (Atkinson[2], 1983).

Which style can be more effective in raising children could also be influenced by the education that the family chooses in raising their children. In this way, it was accepted that the training of family members, especially the training of parents (mothers) in order to properly understand the methods of raising children, can help to realize the dream of having a child with higher physical and mental health..  

2- Statement of the problem:

Bamrind[3] includes various types of parenting methods; Authoritative, autocratic and permissive. The children of parents who use an authoritative style in raising their children have warm and respectful relationships with their peers, these children have a pleasant feeling towards themselves (Fernik, Tasca [4], 1996; quoted by Kamijani; Maher, 2016).

Sincere and positive parenting allows them to know that they are accepted as valuable and worthy individuals and have serious, but appropriate expectations that are met with accompanied by explanations, they help children to evaluate their behaviors against reasonable criteria. Authoritative parenting is related to resistance to adverse peer pressure (Fletcher[5] et al., 1996, quoted by Kamijani; Maher, 2016).

On the other hand, teenagers who are faced with extreme parental behaviors, whether they limit too much or limit too little, tend to a lot of peers, ( Tenit [6] et al., 1999 quoted by Kamijani; Maher, 2016). They often rely on the advice of their peers about their personal life and future, and are more likely to violate their parents' rules, neglect schoolwork, smoke, drink and use drugs, commit delinquent acts, and engage in other problematic behaviors. Children of autocratic parents are more likely to be sad and achieve less success in school and have poor relationships with their peers (Patalaz[7], 1987; Hart, Ladd and Burleson[8], 1990; cited by Alizadeh, 2010).

Family life education[9], which historically began in 1960, is also referred to as a type of parent group education that In addition to paying attention to the growth of the family's potential abilities, it can be aimed at solving problems, and this type of education should be based on the improvement of knowledge, or it should pay attention to attitudes and skills (Irlen [10], Weisner [11], 2004).

Mushkabid Haghighi (2016) in a research entitled "The effect of family life education on reducing parental stress of mothers with ADHD" has shown that with family life education Mothers with ADHD children can reduce negative feelings of role competence, social isolation, relationship with spouse, attachment, and health.

Irlen and Weisner (2004) have reported in a research that 9 weeks of family life training, with the aim of changing behavior, causes important changes in parents to succeed in controlling their children's behavior, which in some way has behavioral inconsistency, (Shahrakipour; 1388).

Farstein [12] (1986), states that when parents are given correct information about their child's problems, mothers show appropriate mechanisms to deal with their children rationally without interfering with their emotions (Mokhtari, 1387).

Given that various researches have tried to investigate the effect of education on changing the behavior style of parents, the present research is aimed at To answer this question, does family life education (F.L.E) change mothers' parenting style? Is Family Life Education (F.L.E) able to increase the authoritative style of mothers with teenage sons and decrease their permissive and autocratic styles? 3- Necessity of conducting research: In this century, despite the anxieties caused by social, economic and industrialization, which parents suffer from, and the existence of injuries that students face, this has caused parents to have problems in choosing the right parenting method. to be By creating the right attitude and giving the necessary knowledge to the parents in the style of raising their children, they can achieve significant success with the help and support of the family. On the other hand, if families are unaware of their children's problems or have a negative and wrong attitude, their children are under pressure from all sides and suffer from marginal issues and disabilities (self-esteem, social development, self-concept, etc.) and gradually it becomes a huge problem that requires a lot of time and effort to solve. It seems that many of these problems can be reduced by organizing a training class for mothers in choosing the correct parenting style. Erkos and Henon [13] (1999; quoted by Mashkabidhaghiqi, 2016), have stated that family life education programs can be standardized according to individuals and families and their special conditions. It is usually emphasized that family life education should be based on the immediate needs of individuals and families.