Dimensions of Religiousness That Influence Parenting

Parental religiosity has generally been associated with greater child and parent functioning; however, it has been suggested that when parenting a child with behavior problems, some aspects of parental religiousness (e.g., negative religious coping, biblical conservatism) might decrease functioning. We examined the influence of religious variables (sanctification of parenting, negative and positive religious coping, biblical conservatism) on the relationship between child behavior problems and parental stress as well as sense of competence among parents (N = 139) of children ages 3-12 years. Parents high in sanctification showed little change in parental stress as severity of behavior problems increased. Similarly, positive religious coping was found to play a protective role in the relationship between behavior problems and parental sense of competence. However, positive religious coping was related to increased stress in parents of children with few behavior problems and was not associated with any decrease in stress for parents of children with more difficult behavior. Parents of children with greater perceived behavior problems reported significantly higher sanctification of parenting and parental stress, as well as lesser use of positive religious coping and lower sense of competence. This study provides evidence to suggest that parental religiousness can have either a positive or negative influence on parental functioning, depending on parenting circumstances and personal perceptions of God and religion.