PA GE 20
8 IPRC 2022/BOR B-Parenting 03
The Relationship between Parenting Stress and Child Behaviour Problems among Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder: The Role of Parenting Behaviour and
Social Support
Rokhwatun Nisa Damanhuri1, Nazariah Shar’ie Janon2 [email protected]1, [email protected]2
International Islamic University Malaysia, Malaysia
ABSTRACT
Parenting children with ASD is not an easy task as there are many extra parenting demands placed on parents, and as a result, many parents, particularly mothers, experience parenting stress. This study aimed to investigate the moderating effect of social support in the relationship between parenting stress and parenting behaviour. A cross-sectional survey was conducted by using Parental Stress Scale, Alabama Parenting Questionnaire, Family Support Scale, and Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire by snowball and purposive sampling techniques, a total of 198 Malaysian mothers whose child had been diagnosed with ASD and was between 5 and 12 years old. This study descriptive analysis and the PLS-SEM with SmartPLS version 3.0. The results from PLS-SEM demonstrated that there is not relationship between maternal parenting stress and child behaviour problems; only corporal punishment was significantly related to child behaviour problems, while positive parenting was not; maternal parenting behaviour did not mediate the relationship between maternal parenting stress and child behaviour problems; and only formal social support moderated the relationship between maternal parenting stress and positive parenting, while informal social was not. Such findings highlight the importance of conducting cross-cultural research, particularly in Asian contexts, in order to gain a better understanding of the predictors of child behaviour problems, such as how parenting stress, parenting behaviour, and social support are related to child behaviour problems. These findings may also be a frame for professionals and other relevant parties to design and develop a comprehensive intervention that includes parental elements (parenting stress and parenting behaviour) and social support as main components to aid in the reduction of behaviour problems in children with ASD.
Keywords: parenting stress, child behaviour problems, autism spectrum disorder, parenting behaviour, social support
