Rural Parents Research Articles

The Parental Influence on Their Children’s Career Choices

This study explores the role of parents in shaping their children’s career aspirations, with a specific focus on the impact of parental education and urban-rural divides on career guidance involvement. Data were collected from 5,000 parents across 200 schools in 17 regions and 3 cities using convenience sampling methods. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze respondents’ demographic and academic backgrounds. The results reveal that parents with secondary education are more actively engaged in guiding their children’s career decisions compared to those with higher education. Furthermore, a significant urban-rural divide exists, with rural parents demonstrating lower awareness and involvement in career guidance activities, potentially limiting career aspirations among rural students. Parental involvement peaks during middle school and declines as students approach higher education. These findings highlight the need for targeted career guidance interventions, particularly in rural areas, to ensure equitable support for all students. The study concludes by recommending strategies to increase parental engagement across different educational levels and geographical locations.

Parental Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices Regarding Early Childhood Caries in Bihor, Romania: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Early childhood caries (ECC) is a significant global health issue, particularly affecting deciduous teeth in young children. ECC is prevalent in Romania, where nearly half of children experience dental caries. This study aimed to assess the influence of gender, age, and living environment on parents' knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAP) regarding ECC in Bihor County, Romania, using a KAP-type questionnaire. A cross-sectional study was conducted between March and September 2024, utilizing an online KAP questionnaire distributed via social networks. The sample comprised 419 parents of children under six years old. Respondents provided socio-demographic data and answered questions regarding their knowledge, attitudes, and practices concerning ECC prevention, treatment, and oral health. Statistical analysis was conducted using Chi-square tests to assess associations between demographic factors and parental KAP. A p-value of less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Of the 419 respondents, 83.1% were female, and 62.5% were between the ages of 31 and 40. Significant gender-based differences were found in knowledge about pain from caries (93.7% of female participants vs. 81.7% of male participants, p = 0.004) and the importance of brushing twice daily (93.7% of female respondents vs. 80.3% of male respondents, p = 0.010). Younger parents (aged 18-30) were more likely to affirm the effectiveness of fluoride (65.4%) compared to those aged 31-40 (53.1%, p = 0.02). Urban parents were more likely to correctly identify the timing of tooth eruption (59.1% vs. 52.6% of rural parents, p = 0.021). The study highlights gender, age, and urban-rural disparities in parental knowledge and attitudes towards ECC. These findings underscore the need for targeted educational interventions to improve oral health outcomes and reduce ECC prevalence in the Bihor region. Tailored public health strategies addressing demographic factors could enhance preventive oral health behaviors and reduce the healthcare burden associated with untreated dental caries.

Empowering rural parents to effectively contribute to their children’s education

The high level of inequality in South Africa has widened the gap between rural and urban schools, and the performance of rural schools has been continuously declining compared to urban schools. Poor performance in rural schools is perpetuated by parents being absent from their children’s education because the socio-economic conditions and their educational background do not allow them to commit their time and energy towards education. Learners are left on their own to decide their future. The disparity between rural and urban schooling was further exposed by the COVID-19 pandemic. As schools were closed during lockdown, teaching and learning was suspended in rural schools, however, in urban schools teaching and learning continued through online platforms. The lockdowns gave parents an opportunity to teach, advocate, and create conducive spaces to help their children focus on learning. During lockdowns, parents were expected to act as teachers in their homes to educate their children, and therefore, school closure presented opportunities for parents to actively participate in their children’s education. However, their socio-economic conditions and poor educational backgrounds continue to threaten effective parental engagement, posing a threat to the academic success of rural learners. Despite attempts by the government to introduce school governing bodies in schools as a structure to integrate schools and parents, the problem of little parental engagement remains unresolved. The purpose with this study was to empower parents in rural areas to effectively participate in their children’s education.

Fostering Trust in Public Health Messaging: Tailoring Communication for Rural Parents.

As pandemic-related mistrust of public health recommendations in rural communities may compound gaps in pediatric immunizations, our team explored parents' perceptions of trustworthiness in messaging. Qualitative study using 4 virtual focus groups. Rural Wisconsin. Participants (n = 25) were parents or guardians of children recruited through our contacts with community-based organizations serving rural communities. Researchers used task-oriented elicitation techniques to initiate discussion on the trustworthiness of messengers and messages providing health recommendations. Participants were asked to (1) review existing public health messaging on a range of topics and from a range of sponsors; and (2) rank a list of potential messengers in terms of trustworthiness (eg, local health department, Centers for Disease Control). Discussions were recorded, and audio files transcribed, to facilitate a team-based, thematic analysis. Competency in medical knowledge and parenting experience contributed to estimations of trustworthiness. Participants also responded well to messages and messengers that were able to project recognition of their children's uniqueness and their experience as parents. Participants distrusted messengers who were seen as biased or "one-sided" in their perspectives. For successful health promotion for rural-living parents, messengers must be recognized as "competent" to provide pediatric health advice and to avoid blanket recommendations that may undermine parents' experience and feelings of being "understood" and affect perceptions of trustworthiness.

Dietary Intake and Snacking Behaviour of Children Aged 3-5 in Urban and Rural Areas of Thailand’s Southernmost Border Provinces

Thailand suffers from the double burden of malnutrition due to the nutrition transition(1). Shifts in eating patterns from traditional foods to more processed foods, an increase in snacking and urbanisation are associated with the nutrition transition(2). We aimed to explore eating, feeding, and snacking behaviours in children aged 3-5 living in urban and rural areas of Thailand’s Southernmost Border Provinces (SBPs).A cross-sectional survey was conducted among 279 parent-child dyads recruited from one urban (n=135) and three rural schools (n=144) in the SBPs. The International Eating and Feeding Tool (ICFET)(3) was used to collect sociodemographic data, feeding frequency, food and snack consumption. Weight and height were measured to calculate WHZ (weight- for-height z score) and HAZ (heigh-for-age z score) scores. The frequency of consumption for groups and types of food were summed to give a monthly frequency. A 24-hour recall of intake of plated foods and drinks during five potential eating occasions was taken. Carers rated the applicability of statements regarding their use and control of snacks. Descriptive statistics and Mann-Whitney U test for comparisons between urban and rural areas were analysed using SPSS V28.Socioeconomic disparities between caregivers from urban and rural areas were observed. Onefourth (22%) of rural caregivers reported senior high school education and no income (16%) compared to 0.7%, (P<0.001) and 1% respectively in urban caregivers (P<0.001). Child stunting was more prevalent in rural areas (24% vs 6% urban, P<0.001). No difference in wasting was observed between the two settings (7% rural vs 9% urban, P<0.423). Monthly food frequencies (times) (Median, IQR) were higher in urban compared to rural areas for milk and dairy products (30, 15-45) urban vs (15, 15-30) rural (P<0.001) and fruits and vegetables (Mean, SD) (53, 31) urban vs (43, 29) rural, (P=0.008). Half the children (56%) had three between-meals snacks and dry finger foods (mean, SD) (1.7, 0.5) times daily. Rural parents described higher scores of snack control (Median, IQR) (16, 15-18) rural vs (15, 13-16) urban, (P<0.001), and felt children were more likely to seek snacks in response to hunger compared to urban children (5, 2-5) rural vs (4, 2-5) urban, (P<0.001). Surprisingly, more snack foods were consumed in rural areas (50, 33-75) rural vs (45, 33-60) urban, (P=0.042).Eating snacks between meals is common in Thai children living in SBPs. Snack foods are widely eaten, even more in rural than urban children. Despite the substantial differences in socioeconomic characteristics and levels of stunting, there was little variation between urban and rural areas in the commonness of snacking.

EDUCATED AND UNEDUCATED PARENTS’ MIND SET TOWARDS GIRLS’ EDUCATION: COMPARATIVE PERSPECTIVE AT SECONDARY SCHOOLS

Education is a fundamental human right without gender discrimination to uplift the economic, social, and culture of society through education. The main purpose of the study was to investigate the comparison of educated & uneducated parents’ mindsets regarding female education at secondary school level. The essentialness of this investigation was to view the mindset of parents comparatively toward girls’ education. The population of study was parents of secondary school-level students of Dera Ghazi Khan. The research design was causal-comparative based on a survey. The sample of the study was 96 parents who were selected through the random sampling techniques. The questionnaire was developed at a five-point Likert type of scale to collect the data from the selected parents. The study results showed that educated parents preferred the girls’ education more than uneducated parents, urban parents than rural parents, and mothers than fathers. Thus, it is recommended that the female should avail educational opportunities for their educational development. The government must offer financial help to those parents who are unable to educate their daughters due to financial constraints.

Cultural repertoires and status safeguarding among rural middle‐class parents

AbstractObjectiveThis study investigated how middle‐class rural parents engaged in status safeguarding in an economically struggling rural community and how the parenting views and practices of rural return migrants impacted the community.BackgroundRural communities seek college‐educated returners to offset outmigration. We know little about how returners impact the community, especially if they return to raise children.MethodThis study analyzed interview data from 15 white, college‐educated parents between the ages of 25 and 38 who returned to their rural hometown to raise their children.ResultsAll returners emphasized their children's choice regarding their future educational and occupational paths, and they equally valued college and skilled trades. In other ways, rural return migrants drew on distinct cultural repertoires in their childrearing strategies. Parents who had not lived in cities before returning relied on a localized cultural repertoire to engage in status safeguarding through reputation management as they monitored cross‐class interactions and emphasized fitting in. In contrast, rural return migrants who had lived in cities drew on a cosmopolitan cultural repertoire that emphasized exposure to cultural amenities and engaged in cultural practices that they saw as distinguishing their children from the local community.ConclusionAlthough the return of college‐educated residents is often celebrated, this study suggests that college‐educated migrants may ultimately maintain inequalities within the community through social class or cultural exclusion based on their cultural repertoires.

Rural Parent Viewpoints of What Makes College Possible: A Q Methodology Study

Rural Parent Viewpoints of What Makes College Possible: A Q Methodology Study

Covid-19 and students life in Khansama Upazila, Dinajpur District, Bangladesh

The Covid-19 has had drastic effect on educational sector around the world. This study took an attempt to explore how far the Corona pandemic affected the lives of rural and municipal students of Khansama Upazila, Dinajpur District, Bangladesh. The study collected data by using questionnaire interviews from 198 respondents who were 9 to 18 years old. The study found that the Corona pandemic hit the educational lives of rural pupils more compared to municipal ones and a remarkable number of rural students were afraid of returning to their studies than those of municipal ones. According to the survey, municipal students were more aware of Corona infection than rural ones. It also found that students-families of both areas had financial crisis during Corona pandemic which created a rift in the families that affected the mentality of the students. It also found that rural students involved more in income generating activities to support their families than their counter ones, and many rural parents married off their school-going daughters to reduce their financial crisis. Long time market closure result of this pandemic, made a shortage of daily necessities in both areas which affected the nutritional needs of the students. Again, the confinement of the students in their home during the lockdown isolated them to their surroundings that ultimately affected their mental health.

Do rural migrant parents intend to settle in cities? Impacts of childcare strategies, split households, migration duration, and distance

IntroductionThe current transnational and internal migration involve more and more circular and temporary residences in the host communities. However, few studies have examined the settlement intention of circular and temporary migrant parents with children under 18 years old, which has made inclusive planning for these migrants' needs difficult. This paper aimed to examine whether rural migrant parents intended to settle in cities, with specific discussion about the impacts of childcare strategies, split households, and migration duration and distance.MethodsThis was a cross-sectional study design. The data was sourced from the China Migrants Dynamic Survey.ResultsThrough analysis of a sample of 4,247 rural migrant parents in the Pearl River Delta, this study found that 56% of rural migrant parents intended to become urban settlers. Higher levels of education and income and longer migration durations yielded the parents' increased intention to become urban settlers. The birthplaces and primary caregivers of migrants' children were also significant factors. Moreover, split households, especially households in which the youngest child did not live with the parents in cities, decreased parents' intention to settle permanently. Instead of geographic distance, administrative provincial boundaries were found to be a critical factor in inter-provincial migrant parents' decreased intention to settle in cities.DiscussionThis study provides insights into understanding urbanization in China and contributes to future policy studies regarding internal migration, social integration and population growth, especially in a low fertility and rapid aging contest.

Institutional Pension Insurance in Sustainable Development of Urban–Rural Intergenerational Support

Parental downward support plays an important role in urban and rural sustainable development. It is of great significance to study parental downward transfers and their motivation. However, there is no consensus on the motivation behind parental downward transfers in China. This study examines the timing and monetary impacts of social pensions on parental downward transfers and assesses the motivations behind them. We found that pension insurance encouraged rural parents to provide time and monetary support to their children. Unlike rural parents, pension insurance increased the monetary support of urban parents but inhibited their time support. Because of the higher income level of urban parents and the better organization of the domestic service market, parents have the motivation and conditions to reduce their time support and increase monetary support. Our findings highlight the importance of parental downward transfers in urban and rural sustainable development.

Beyond Hukou-Based Exclusion: Revisiting Rural Migrant Parents’ Active Agency in Educational Involvement and Impacts on Their Children’s Educational Trajectory

China has witnessed significant growth in the number of children affected by internal rural–urban migration. These children predominantly suffer from educational inequalities. Most relevant studies have primarily attributed such inequalities to hukou-based exclusion. However, the active agency of rural migrant parents in their reactions to such structural barriers has been downplayed in these studies. We conducted qualitative investigations with migrant parents, their children, and schoolteachers from a private migrant school in Beijing in 2014, 2015, and 2019. We found that in the post-2014 period, rural migrant children still faced increased and systematic marginalization in the urban public education system. Faced with this evolving policy context, most rural migrant parents proactively addressed the structural barriers to maximize the quality of education their children could receive. The data further suggests that the educational involvement of parents from disadvantaged backgrounds is likely to be shown in the school choice and enrollment process and is influenced by their economic conditions and social networks in urban and rural communities. This study contributes to understanding rural migrant parents’ differentiated abilities in educational involvement in the light of economic and social influences and the resulting precarity and increased mobility in their children’s educational trajectories.

Rural Parents’ Engagement in Secondary Schools: Current Practices, Problems and Prospects

This study explores the influences of parental socio-economic status on their engagement practices in rural secondary schools in Bangladesh. This study took place in a specific context where the majority of parents lacked literacy and faced financial constraints. This reality hindered their ability to provide adequate support for their children's education. A qualitative case study research has been chosen to carry out the research. The data has been collected using group discussion, semi-structured interviews and observation from five rural secondary schools in Bangladesh. The findings of this study revealed that parental engagement initiatives related to the annual programs of schools resulted in limited practice of one-to-one communication with parents. The lack of parental literacy, poverty, and being the first generation to receive schooling were identified as fundamental factors that hindered regular and overall engagement initiatives. Furthermore, there is limited opportunity for both parents and teachers to actively participate in the schooling system. In this regard, this study emphasized the importance of place and suggested contextually formed initiatives for further improvement of parental engagement.

The Closed Loop Between Parental Upbringing and Online Game Addiction: A Narrative Study of Rural Children's Growth in China.

With the rapid development of information, digital networks, and artificial intelligence technologies, the new generation of children growing up with electronic products faces the dilemma of addiction to online games. There is a significant correlation between the addiction of rural children to online games and the lack of proper parental upbringing. Based on purposive sampling, the research selected 41 sixth-grade rural children, 20 parents, and 14 teachers from three cities in Zhejiang Province, China. Three rounds of semi-structured, in-depth interviews were conducted. The research portrayed that the parental upbringing styles of rural children addicted to online games could be categorized into four types: conflict and chaos type, indulgent and permissive type, disciplinary neglect type, and coercive and brutal type. All four parenting styles were related to emotional involvement and value guidance. Both the parenting styles of rural parents and the children's addiction to online games were difficult to self-update and change, and they mutually "affirmed" and even reinforced each other. Insufficient cultural capital was found in rural families, resulting in a closed loop between parental upbringing and online game addiction. Introducing professional expertise, increasing cultural capital, and promoting improvement in rural parenting styles are crucial.

Rural parents’ adherence to infant feeding guidelines to prevent allergy: a cross sectional study in New South Wales

BackgroundResponding to international research showing that early introduction of common food allergens can reduce the chance of developing allergies, in 2016 the Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy (ASCIA) revised allergen introduction guidelines, recommending earlier introduction of allergens to infants in their first year. Australia has high food allergy rates, and limited understanding of adherence to allergen introduction guidelines, especially in rural areas. This project explored rural parent adherence to ASCIA guidelines.MethodsThis was a mixed method cross sectional study using an online survey including multiple-choice and qualitative short answer responses. The sample were 336 women from two rural health districts in New South Wales. All were aged 18 or over, and either pregnant or had delivered a baby since July 2018. Descriptive statistics were used to measure behavioural alignment with the recommended guidelines, thematic analysis was used to analyse attitudes and explanations.ResultsIn 84.3% of children, feeding adhered to all four guidelines studied, including no elimination of allergens during pregnancy (98%), age of introduction of solids (97.7%), continuation of breast milk/cow’s milk formula during introduction of solids (95%), and age of introduction of allergens (92.9%). Adherence was not significantly correlated with the education (X2 = 17.9, P = .056), prior history of allergy [neither mother (X2 = 0.945,P = .623) nor previous children (X2 = 0.401,P = .818)], or primary care received during pregnancy. More than 90% of participants agreed or strongly agreed that the guidelines are realistic, trustworthy, and important for the health of their child. However, thematic analysis revealed that parents’ perceptions of a child’s individual progress, and medical conditions or other circumstances, such as challenges with breastfeeding, will often take precedence over adherence to specific guideline recommendations.ConclusionsHigh rates of adherence with ASCIA guidelines found here are comparable with findings from metropolitan studies and encouraging for future population health. Participant comments on the guidelines imply to rural policymakers that there are multiple influences on parent decisions about infant feeding, often including parents’ own intuition and experiences. Further studies to improve understanding of the role of information, carers, and other influences on parent decision-making concerning feeding attitudes and behaviours will be necessary to optimise adherence in rural areas.

Assessing parents’ satisfaction with their parental role for a more effective partnerships between families and schools

This study is framed within the field of family education family-school-community partnerships considering ways by which schools might help parents to be better involved in their children’s education; one of this ways is performing parenting programmes within the school in areas of interest for parents. The objective is to identify parents’ educational needs regarding their role with small children to help them to answer those needs by means of a parenting programme. Accordingly, the study has been organized in two phases: the first one is devoted to assess and identify parental needs and the second one to describe and evaluate a parenting programme. Both qualitative and quantitative procedures to gather information have been used: parents’ questionnaires, group dynamics with parents and semi-structured interviews. The sample is composed of 54 Spanish rural and urban parents with small children. Results in the assessment phase indicate that although most parents are satisfied with their parental role, many have doubts about how to solve problems and help their children to control their behaviour better. The positive results of the parenting programme in the second phase point out the convenience to design, perform and evaluate educational strategies for empowering parents while upbringing their children.

The Tension Between Chinese Peasants’ Family Capital Reproduction Strategies and Massification in Higher Education

This paper is focused on the tension between Chinese peasants' family capital reproduction strategies and the existing higher education system. Under an institutionalised urban-rural segregation, most rural residents are not entitled to some of the basic social welfare guarantees available to urban residents, such as pensions. As a preparation for the future of their children as well as for themselves, peasants have a strong urge to invest in their children's higher education as their family capital reproduction strategy. However, higher education institutions, without sufficient funding from the government, have to increase enrolment size and charge high tuition fees. Increase in the cost of higher education has strongly impacted on the family economy of rural residents, and the rapid expansion of the system has resulted in an employment crisis for college graduates. Bourdieu's theory of capital reproduction will be applied in the analysis of several cases of rural parents and their children who have participated in higher education. The research eventually leads to the conclusion that, under urban-rural segregation, Chinese peasants are compelled to convert their limited economic capital into academic capital, while the reversibility of this capital conversion is hardly objectively guaranteed.

Parents’ Attitudes towards Inclusion of Sexuality Education in Malaysian Schools

The present study examined the attitudes of Malaysian rural parents regarding sexual health education in elementary schools. Using a comprehensive list of sex education topics, parents were asked to examine which topics they believed should be taught at schools. In addition, the study also assessed the relationship between parents’ demographic characteristics such as age, gender, education, and occupation and their approval of sexual health education. The respondents of the study included parents (n=211) of children registered in four selected schools in Kedah, Malaysia. The majority of them (73%) supported the inclusion of various sexual health topics in school curriculum provided the contents were in line with religious teachings. The study has generated important empirical findings regarding local community’s response to school-based sexuality education. This information is needed in facilitating the development of sexual health policy at various institutional levels, and in the effective implementation of sexual health curriculum in Malaysian schools.

Children's Oral Health Status Among Urban and Rural Areas of Qassim Region, Saudi Arabia: A Cross-Sectional Study.

Dental caries is a disease that is quite common in children and has a negative impact on their oral health, mental health, and quality of life. This study aimed to collect and correlate information about oral health awareness, oral health status, and oral hygiene practices in the urban and rural areas of Saudi Arabia. Methods:The cross-sectional study was carried out among three dental clusters of Qassim from November 2022 to April 2023 in 12 schools on seven- to 12-year-old children. Data collection was done using the WHO Oral Health Questionnaire for Children. The current investigation included 700 children, 360 males and 340 females. Both urban and rural parents were more educated. Most children in rural areas reported excellent gum health than in urban areas (48.2% and 41.3%, respectively). Pain was the most common cause of visiting the dentist in rural more than in urban areas (55.7% and 54.5%, respectively). A significantly higher frequency of sugar consumption was reported for rural children. Most rural and urban childrentake care of their teeth. The vast majority of them use a toothbrush and toothpaste to clean their teeth. However, the dental visit was not regular and only related to the toothache. They need more oral health education and promotion programs to improve the knowledge of oral health behavior in the Qassim region and the rest of Saudi Arabia.

Investing in sons or daughters? The educational aspirations of rural parents in China

Based on the first wave of the China Education Panel Survey, this study aims to test two competing mechanisms including son preference and meritocracy of leading to parents’ expectations of and investment in their children’s education. This article presents a general portrayal of academic performance among rural boys and girls. The findings depict a general pattern of parents’ investment: parents are more likely to invest in their daughters than sons, and fathers have a higher educational expectation of daughters. The influence of sibling numbers and ‘having a brother(s) or not’ on parents’ educational expectations and investment is similar for rural boys and girls. Fathers’ educational expectations are mainly based on the academic performance of their children (meritocracy) while mothers’ are more closely related to children’s gender. Son preference as a cultural characteristic remains influential in rural regions, although it is not as powerful as before and a trend towards egalitarianism is emerging.