MATERNAL EMPLOYMENT AND PARENT-CHILD RELATIONSHIPS IN SINGLE-PARENT FAMILIES OF LOW-BIRTH-WEIGHT PRESCHOOLERS

Background: The influence of premature birth of an infant in female-he aded, single-parent families together or in conjunction with family en vironment factors, such as employment of the mother, on the mother-pre mature child relationship has not been considered in past studies. Obj ectives: To explore differences in parent-child and family relationshi ps for employed and nonemployed single mothers of low-birth-weight (LB W) and full-term preschool children and to describe the relationships of the mother's employment status, employment history, and employment attitude-behavior consistency to parent-child and family relationships . Methods: Single mothers with LBW (n = 60) and full-term (n = 61) pre school children provided data on their employment situation, the Paren ting Stress Index, the Feetham Family Functioning Survey, and the Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment. Results: Employed mot hers had more positive perceptions and provided more enriching home en vironments for their children. Greater attitude-behavior consistency w as associated with more positive perceptions of the parental role. Con clusion: Thus, in single-parent families, employment and consistency a re positive influences on the mother-child relationship.