The relationship between social support and maternal behaviors and attitudes: A meta‐analytic review

Abstract

Used meta-analysis to analyze 66 studies that evaluated the relationship between social support available to the mother and maternal behaviors and attitudes. Investigators sampled relatively homogeneous populations of white, middle-class, married mothers of young children without physical or mental disabilities. A variety of instruments were used to assess key study variables. Significant correlations existed between both emotional and material support and maternal behaviors. Implications of these findings for funding of family support programs and for professionals working with mothers are discussed.

How Do Relationships Support Parenting? Effects of Attachment Style and Social Support on Parenting Behavior in an At‐Risk Population

“…Studies of the importance of supportive relationships to parenting fall into two primary categories: those that explore the effects of general social support provided by others, and those that focus more on parents' own relationship history and comfort with establishing interpersonal relationships (attachment style). This research generally finds evidence that parents who have sufficient positive social support, both in terms of perceived and received support (Abidin 1992;Andresen and Telleen 1992;Cutrona and Troutman 1986;Kotchick et al 2005), and who have secure working models of attachment (e.g., Bowlby 1973;Feeney 2002;Belsky et al 1986;Rholes et al 1995) have better relationships with their children and better parenting skills, as measured across a variety of domains.…”

Predicting disturbed parental awareness in mothers with a newborn infant: test of a theoretical model

“…The model included four variables: parental awareness, childhood experiences, social support, maternal characteristics (in particular, maladjustment, inability to cope with non-child related stress situations, depressiveness, psychological distress). It was based on three theoretical perspectives on the development of disturbed parenting: Belsky's buffer hypothesis of the parent's person mediating effects of outer stressors and predisposing child factors (Belsky, 1997;Belsky and Vondra, 1989), theory of intergenerational transmission of parenting (Buchanan, 1996;Rutter, 1989;Steele, 1976), and social support theory on the effects of social networks on parenting (Andersen and Telleen, 1992;Goldstein et al, 1996;Isabella, 1994;Spieker, 1988). The results partly supported Belsky's buffer hypothesis in that negative maternal characteristics significantly predicted low levels of parental awareness.…”

“…maltreatment) are regarded as being the predominant determinants of disturbed mothering (Buchanan, 1996;George and Solomon, 1999;Rutter, 1989;Steele, 1976), and (3) the social support perspective, which emphasizes the determining role of socialcontextual variables (e.g. mother's satisfaction with her social support network, marital satisfaction, spousal support) on the quality of the mother-infant relationship (Andersen and Telleen, 1992;Goldstein et al, 1996;Isabella, 1994;Spieker, 1988). In the model a central place was given to Belsky's buffer hypothesis, in that maternal characteristics were considered to have direct effects on parental awareness.…”

Gentrification and Urban Children's Well‐Being: Tipping the Scales from Problems to Promise

“…Social support promotes effective parenting through the provision of information about parenting and resources for children, instrumental assistance with household management and child care, emotional support, and social expectations for appropriate parental behavior (e.g., Andresen and Telleen 1992). Social support also can promote parental mental health and buffer the impact of economic hardship on parenting (e.g., Simons et al 1993).…”