Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of the Relationships Between Family Social Support and Parenting Stress, Burden, Beliefs and Practices

Abstract

This paper includes the res ults of a systematic review and meta-analysis of the relationships between perceived family social support and parenting stress, caregiving burden, parent engagement practices, and parent-child interaction practices among caregivers raising a child with and without identified disabilities or health-related conditions birth to 18 years of age. The study included 82 independent samples of caregivers (N = 7,675 study participants) conducted in 12 countries between 1985 and 2020. The Family Support Scale total scale score was the independent variable in each study. The dependent measures included seven different parenting stress scales, eight different caregiving burden scales, seven different parenting belief scales, and nine different parenting behavior and practices scales. The correlations between the independent and dependent measures were the sizes of effect between the perceived family social support and the different parenting measures. Results showed that perceived family social support was related to attenuated parenting stress, less caregiving burden, and more positive parenting beliefs, behavior, and practices. The sizes of effect ranged between r = -.14, 95% CI = -.17, -.11, p = .000, for caregiving burden and r = .22, 95% CI = .16, .28, p = .000, for parenting beliefs. The sizes of effect for the relationships between measures did not differ as a function of child condition (developmental disabilities, autism spectrum disorders, health-related conditions, at-risk status, or no disability or at-risk status) or caregiver gender (mothers or fathers). Child age moderated the relationships between family social support and parenting stress and caregiving burden and caregiver age and marital status moderated the relationships between family social support and parenting stress. The pattern of results provided support for the hypothesized relationships between the independent and dependent measures based on the conceptual frameworks that guided the conduct of the study and showed that perceived family social support was related to attenuated parenting stress, less caregiving burden, and more positive parenting beliefs and practices.