Parental stress, coercive and encouraging parenting among Chinese one-child, two-child and three-child families

Abstract

Due to changes in family planning policy, families with multiple children are re-emerging in China. This article looked at parental stress and parenting practices in Chinese families with one child, two children and three children, and explored to what extent, controlling for socioeconomic factors, the number of children and parenting practices influenced parental stress. Using a sample from southern China, we measured parental stress and parenting practices among parents who have at least one child in primary school. Results showed that having multiple children increased parental pressure, and this was partially caused by a change in parenting practices: compared with their counterparts with only one child, parents with multiple children tended to use less positive encouragement but more coercive parenting. Findings suggested that in the context of low fertility, ‘parenting’ is more important than ‘fertility’. Effective parenting practices help reduce pressure, which in turn reduce a family’s fear of childbearing.