The Relationships Between Family Financial Stress, Mental Health Problems, Child Rearing Practice, and School Involvement Among Taiwanese Parents with School-Aged Children

Abstract

This study examined the relationships between family financial stress, mental health problems, child rearing practice, and school involvement using a sample of 431 parents with children in grades 1–4 from one elementary school in a rural area of Taiwan. Financial stress was hypothesized to be associated with parental mental health problems, which in turn were expected to be linked to poorer child rearing practice and less parental involvement in school. Structural equation models were constructed and tested in a stepwise manner. Results showed that financial stress was significantly associated with higher mental health problems, poorer child rearing effort, and decreased parental school involvement while parents’ mental health problems were not significantly associated with their child rearing efforts or involvement in school. These findings suggest that the impact of family financial stress on Taiwanese parents’ child rearing practice is largely direct rather than mediated through their mental health problems.