The effects of a 2-week gratitude journaling intervention to reduce parental stress and enhance well-being: a pilot study among preschool parents

Abstract

Parenting entails a range of actions aimed at supporting children and caring for them, but they can also be very stressful. This study examines the effects of a 2-week gratitude journaling exercise on parental stress and well-being among preschool parents. The sample includes parents from a state preschool who volunteered to participate. An experimental group (n = 20) and a control group (n = 21) were created. Parental stress and well-being were evaluated using the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-Being Scale and the Parental Stress Scale. Data were gathered using pre-test, post-test, and follow-up test evaluations. To compare groups and examine changes over time, statistical techniques such the Mann–Whitney U and Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test were used. According to the results, after the intervention, participants in the trial group had a significantly lower level of parental stress and higher level of mental well-being compared to control group. Moreover, between posttest and follow up study evaluations there were no significant differences in the mental well-being or parental stress levels of the experimental group. These findings suggest that gratitude journaling can significantly reduce parental stress and improve mental well-being. The study contributes to the corpus of research in this field by showing the preventive and protective effects of gratitude journaling exercise on parental stress, particularly in aftermath of pandemics like Covid-19.