Parents’ perception and acceptance of parenting

Abstract

Background Parenting is the process of promoting and supporting the physical, emotional, social, financial, and intellectual development of a child from infancy to adulthood. The definitive objective of parenting is to promote the well-being and development of children. Aim The aim of the present study was to explore parents’ perception and acceptance of parenting. Methods A descriptive qualitative research design was applied to achieve the aim of the study. A convenient sample of 150 parents of school-aged children and adolescents with different acute and chronic health problems were recruited from outpatient clinics that were affiliated to Cairo University Pediatric Hospitals (El-Monira). Two tools were used in the study; a sociodemographic data sheet for parents and their children, and a structured interviewed questionnaire sheet to explore parents’ perceptions and acceptance of parenting. Results The results of the present study revealed that approximately half of the parents expressed that they had not accepted their relationship with their children, and two-thirds of those parents did not interact with their children, as well as did not attended training classes related to parenting. In addition, more than half of parents perceived parenting as a hard task. Finally, the findings showed that parents obtained their perception and acceptance of parenting from three thematic areas: parenting as being embraced by Islam, transferring of cultural values and traditions, and parenting as a challenge. Conclusions The present study concluded that each parent perceived parenting from strong interplay of Islamic teachings, sociocultural values and traditions, in addition to the challenges and difficulties of being a parent. Parents had low levels of perception and acceptance of parenting of their school aged and adolescent children. In addition, there was a significant relationship between parents’ perception and the selected sociodemographic variables. The study recommends that outpatient clinics should provide educational programs about parenting regarding different aspects of parents’ perception and acceptance of parenting.