Prenatal childbearing motivations, parenting styles, and child adjustment: A longitudinal study.

Abstract

To have a child is among individuals' most important and meaningful decisions, with far-reaching implications. Despite evidence linking this decision to a wide variety of consequences, little is known about what motivates people to have children, and even less so about the long-term effects of different childbearing motivations on parenting and child adjustment. This study took a self-determination theory (SDT) perspective, examining how prenatal maternal autonomous and controlled childbearing motivations are related to child behavior problems through parenting styles. The rationale was that prenatal autonomous (sense of volition and self-fulfillment) and controlled (feeling pressured) childbearing motivations would shape later parental styles (autonomy-supportive vs. controlling, respectively) and, consequently, child adjustment. Over a period of 2 years beginning at pregnancy, 326 Israeli mothers reported their prenatal childbearing motivations, as well as parental styles and child behavior problems 20 months postpartum. Results of a path analysis revealed that prenatal autonomous childbearing motivation predicted autonomysupportive parenting, yet the latter was not associated with children's behavior problems. Prenatal controlled motivation predicted controlling parenting, which, in turn, predicted children's internalizing and externalizing problems. No direct effects of childbearing motivation on children's behavior problems are observed, suggesting that childbearing motivation is a distal antecedent operating through more proximal factors such as parenting style. Findings were robust to children's temperamental tendencies and sociodemographic risk factors such as maternal age, high-risk pregnancy, and preterm birth. These findings have theoretical and practical implications for the discourse on motivations underlying the childbearing decision and their effects on parenting and child adjustment.

Post-Truth in the Industrial Revolution Era 4.0 Shaping Children’s Morals in the Household

“…The personality of the child in this case starts from the parenting pattern of parents who tend to give freedom to their children without being limited. Even though this personality has a negative impact on the child's psyche [5]. Because it will form an introverted personality (closed).…”

Parents' childbearing motivations, parenting, and child adjustment: From pregnancy to20‐monthspostpartum

“…Such an approach suggests that motivational orientations to become a parent may shape the experience of parenthood and parental styles and later child adjustment. To conceptualize childbearing motivations, we relied on Self‐Determination Theory (SDT; Ryan & Deci, 2017), which differentiates between two broad types of childbearing motivations: an autonomous childbearing motivation, reflecting internal and volitional reasons to have a child, and a controlled childbearing motivation, reflecting a sense of obligation or conforming to social pressures (Nachoum et al, 2021; Ryan & Deci, 2017).…”

“…The salient influence of parenting styles on child adjustment has led several scholars to investigate the development and the antecedents of different styles (e.g., Aunola et al, 1999; Belsky, 1984; Egeli & Rinaldi, 2016; Estlein, 2021). Some scholars suggest that certain antecedents of those parenting styles can be identified with early childbearing motivational processes (e.g., Miller et al, 2009; Nachoum et al, 2021). Childbearing motivations were addressed from several theoretical perspectives.…”

Financial Support or Emotional Companion: Childbearing Motivations on Children’s Development in China

“…However, to have a child is among individuals' most important and meaningful decisions, with far-reaching implications. Despite evidence linking this decision to a wide variety of consequences, little is known about what motivates people to have children, and even less about the long-term effects of different childbearing motivations on parenting and child adjustment (Nachoum et al, 2021).…”

“…Although some dimensions of childbearing motivation have been identified (Nauck, 2007;Guedes et al, 2015), limited research has investigated how parents' childbearing motivations influence children's performance or well-being. Nachoum et al (2021) shows that prenatal maternal autonomy and controlled childbearing motivations are related to child behavior problems through parenting styles. Moreover, some of the childbearing related topics focus on delayed parenthood (Beets et al, 2011;Mills et al, 2011;Van de Kaa, 2011) and how childbearing motivations may affect the fertility preferences in reproductive-age women; however, do not appear to have any influence on the actual number of children they have (Irani and Khadivzadeh, 2018).…”