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Parenting Stress in Employed and At-Home Mothers in Italy

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Abstract

In Italy, there has been strong cultural support for motherhood as the ideal female role. As increasing numbers of Italian mothers enter the workforce, little is known about the effects of maternal employment. An examination of parenting stress that included work status and Type A Behavior Pattern (TABP) was conducted with 174 employed and at-home mothers in Italy. Higher TABP was associated with higher maternal stress in employed mothers and more stressful parent-child interactions for at-home mothers. The strength of the relationship between parenting stress and TABP varies by maternal work status and parenting stress domain. Considering these results, personality characteristics that are incongruent with feminine gender schema may be especially relevant to the prediction of parenting stress.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Western Washington University, 516 High St., Bellingham, WA, 98225–9089

    Deborah Kirby Forgays

  2. Western Washington University, 516 High St., Bellingham, WA, 98225–9089

    Scott A. Ottaway

  3. 1st University of Rome, La Sapienza, Rome, Italy

    Angela Guarino

  4. Center for Prevention of Tumors, Via dei Dalmati, 37/B, Roma, 00185, Italia

    Angela Guarino

  5. 1st University of Rome, La Sapienza, Via Caio Mario, 800192, Rome, Italy

    Marisa D'Alessio

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  1. Deborah Kirby Forgays
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  4. Marisa D'Alessio
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Forgays, D.K., Ottaway, S.A., Guarino, A. et al. Parenting Stress in Employed and At-Home Mothers in Italy. Journal of Family and Economic Issues 22, 327–351 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1012703227992

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