Mothers' and fathers' perceptions of daily hassles of parenting across early childhood

This article reports on a beginning study of minor daily stresses associated with parenting, and how the perception of minor stresses may be mediated by parental social support networks and social cognitive level. Daily hassles of parenting were assessed in three groups of mothers and fathers with children 9-12, 18-24, and 30-36 months old, along with measures of social support, social cognitive level, and parental satisfaction. Results indicated that reported hassles were significantly greater with increasing child age, although fathers and mothers did not differ in the overall amount of hassle they perceived. Both mothers' and fathers' perception of parenting hassles were related to indices of support and social cognition, although differential patterns of relations were found across ages and between mothers and fathers. Parental social support moderated the effect of minor stresses for some outcomes. The results are discussed in relation to their implications for determinants of parenting and family processes influencing children's relationships with their parents.