Cultural orientations and historical changes as predictors of parenting behaviour

This study addresses the stability and variability of patterns of parenting in three cultural environments that can be assumed to differ with respect to their cultural models. German middle-class families can be assumed to follow primarily independent socialisation goals, Cameroonian Nso farmers can...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:International journal of behavioral development 2005-05, Vol.29 (3), p.229-237
Main Authors: KELLER, Heidi, BORKE, Joern, YOVSI, Relindis, LOHAUS, Arnold, JENSEN, Henning
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biological and medical sciences
Cameroon
Child development
Costa Rica
Cultural differences
Developmental psychology
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Germany
Longitudinal studies
Mother-Baby interactions
Newborn. Infant
Parenting style
Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry
Psychology. Psychophysiology
Social change
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Summary:This study addresses the stability and variability of patterns of parenting in three cultural environments that can be assumed to differ with respect to their cultural models. German middle-class families can be assumed to follow primarily independent socialisation goals, Cameroonian Nso farmers can be assumed to follow primarily interdependent socialisation goals, and Costa Rican families can be assumed to follow an autonomous relational orientation. Parenting patterns of mothers interacting with their 3-month-old babies were assessed at two points in time, being 4 to 6 years apart. The data confirm the predicted cultural differences in style of parenting, which proved to be stable across the covered time span. We also predicted changes in parenting styles that should be oriented to a more independent cultural model across the cultural samples. Our data confirm this hypothesis, although the changes are differentially represented in the three samples, with the Cameroonian Nso sample expressing no significant changes and the German middle-class sample representing the most pronounced changes. The data are interpreted as documenting linkages between parenting and macrolevel societal changes. (Original abstract)
ISSN:0165-0254
1464-0651
DOI:10.1080/01650250544000017