Examining the relationship between childhood parentification, cultural orientation, and parenting behaviours in female primary caregivers

Abstract

Parentification is the phenomenon whereby children take on roles and responsibilities within their family that are typically reserved for adults, such as providing emotional or physical care for their parents or siblings. In this study, 70 female primary caregivers completed online questionnaires that measured parentification in childhood, cultural orientation, and parenting behaviours. Female primary caregivers who identified as individualists reported higher levels of instrumental parentification in childhood than those who identified as collectivists. Correlation analysis showed no strong or consistent relationships with parenting behaviours, but exploratory subscale findings suggest that perceived unfairness of parentification relates to fewer positive parenting practices. Furthermore, cultural orientation showed some direct effects on parenting behaviours. Using thematic analysis, the researcher created nine themes to capture the qualitative data from the short answer questions. Overall, parentification and the emerging area of the intergenerational transmission of parentification call for the attention of mental health, education, and family support systems to recognize parentification as a relational and cultural phenomenon with profound implications.