A Study on the Relationships of Mother's Empathy in Mother-Child Play with Parenting Stress and with Other Variables

놀이상황에서 보이는 어머니의 공감적 행동과 양육스트레스 및 관련 변인에 대한 연구

This study was performed to clarify which variables affected a mother‘s empathic behavior shown in a mother-child play session. Mother’s empathy was videotaped and recorded during mother-child twenty minute play sessions. The variables considered in the research were the mother‘s parenting stress, age and education level, and the child’s sex and birth order. Twenty four mothers volunteered to participate in this study. The age of their children was restricted to 5 years. The results were as follows; First, mothers were verbally more accepting to their second or third child, and allowed their second of third child to lead more than their first child. And older mothers were more likely to accept their children's lead. Seconds, the mothers' parenting stress for acceptance of their children and stress of depression were higher in college graduate mothers than high school graduate mothers. Third, the mother's empathy and level of parenting stress did not show any significant relationships.