Perceived Stress of Pakistani Parents Having Normal Children Aged Under Ten Visiting a Tertiary Care Hospital in Lahore, Pakistan

Abstract

Introduction: Having children changes the dynamics of family functioning and parenting role can become a source of stress for parents, even if their child is following a normal growth pattern without any unusual problem. A maximal number of studies in our setup have been conducted to assess stress levels in parents who have differently abled (special needs) children. This study, in contrast, will assess the perceived stress level in parents who have normal children following a normal growth pattern. Aims & Objectives: 1) To determine perceived stress levels in parents having normal children ≤10 years of age. 2) To identify the association of perceived stress levels in parents with socio-demographic factors. Place and duration of study: Shalamar Hospital, Dec 18, 2019-Mar 19, 2020. Material & Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in one tertiary level hospital in Lahore. The study subjects were parents with normal children ≤10 years of age. Purposive sampling technique was applied to recruit the subjects. Study variables were: a) sociodemographic b) variables of perceived stress among parents. Data was collected upon the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), and a structured socio-demographic Performa. Data was analyzed using SPSS 20, with perceived stress as the outcome. Descriptive statistics were calculated, while the Independent Samples T-test was used to test differences between PSS scores and characteristics of the family. Multivariable Logistic Regression model was applied for studying associations of perceived stress with socio-demographic characteristics. Results: From a total of 390 respondents, the mean parental perceived stress score was 41.59±8.27. Among these, 32.6% were categorized in low stress, 50.8% moderate, and 16.6% in high stress category. A significant association was found between perceived stress and the working status of the mother (pvalue= 0.011), and with the father’s monthly income (p-value=0.000). The Independent sample t-test showed significant differences between PSS total score and structural types of the family (p-value=0.001). Conclusion: The development of a child with parents’ positive mental health is important, and parental stress compromises the healthy growth of children. The current results warrant further study at a community level with a representative sample to have a more in-depth analysis of the application of some intervention at an early stage. This will assist in minimizing parental stress and improve parenting quality.