Occupational balance in parents of pre-school children: Potential differences between mothers and fathers

Background Parents of young children are a vulnerable group with an increased risk of stress-related health problems compared to adults without children. Low occupational balance has been identified as a risk factor for stress-related disorders.Aim The study aimed to describe occupational balance in...

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Main Authors: Sara Uthede, Ida Nilsson, Petra Wagman, Carita Håkansson, Lisette Farias
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Taylor & Francis Group 2023-11-01
Series:Scandinavian Journal of Occupational Therapy
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/11038128.2022.2046154
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author Sara Uthede
Ida Nilsson
Petra Wagman
Carita Håkansson
Lisette Farias
author_facet Sara Uthede
Ida Nilsson
Petra Wagman
Carita Håkansson
Lisette Farias
author_sort Sara Uthede
collection DOAJ
description Background Parents of young children are a vulnerable group with an increased risk of stress-related health problems compared to adults without children. Low occupational balance has been identified as a risk factor for stress-related disorders.Aim The study aimed to describe occupational balance in parents of pre-school children and to explore potential differences between mothers and fathers.Method Data were collected by a web-based survey based on the Occupational Balance Questionnaire (OBQ11). A total of 302 working parents (200 mothers and 102 fathers) with at least one child under seven years of age were included in the study.Findings Mothers reported lower occupational balance than fathers with a median value of 10 for mothers and 12 for fathers (p = 0.029). Mothers rated significantly lower than fathers in three items; ‘Balance between work, home, family, leisure, rest and sleep’, ‘Having sufficient time for doing obligatory occupations’ and ‘Balance between doing things for others and for oneself’.Conclusion The results indicate that caring for pre-school children may negatively impact both parents, impacting mothers’ occupational balance to a greater degree.Significance Occupational therapists’ knowledge could be utilised to increase awareness of the importance of occupational balance within health services and improve mothers’ occupational balance.
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series Scandinavian Journal of Occupational Therapy
spelling doaj-art-a8c38e1599a042b1b1f17d385320d2772024-12-16T14:34:44ZengTaylor & Francis GroupScandinavian Journal of Occupational Therapy1103-81281651-20142023-11-013081199120810.1080/11038128.2022.2046154Occupational balance in parents of pre-school children: Potential differences between mothers and fathersSara Uthede0Ida Nilsson1Petra Wagman2Carita Håkansson3Lisette Farias4Ekerö Rehab Västra, Primärvårdsrehabilitering, Stockholm, SwedenSmärtrehabiliteringsmottagningen, Specialistrehabiliteringsenheten, Uppsala, SwedenDepartment of Rehabilitation, School of Health and Welfare, Jönköping University, Jönköping, SwedenDivision of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Lund University, Lund, SwedenDivision of Occupational Therapy, Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society (NVS), Stockholm, SwedenBackground Parents of young children are a vulnerable group with an increased risk of stress-related health problems compared to adults without children. Low occupational balance has been identified as a risk factor for stress-related disorders.Aim The study aimed to describe occupational balance in parents of pre-school children and to explore potential differences between mothers and fathers.Method Data were collected by a web-based survey based on the Occupational Balance Questionnaire (OBQ11). A total of 302 working parents (200 mothers and 102 fathers) with at least one child under seven years of age were included in the study.Findings Mothers reported lower occupational balance than fathers with a median value of 10 for mothers and 12 for fathers (p = 0.029). Mothers rated significantly lower than fathers in three items; ‘Balance between work, home, family, leisure, rest and sleep’, ‘Having sufficient time for doing obligatory occupations’ and ‘Balance between doing things for others and for oneself’.Conclusion The results indicate that caring for pre-school children may negatively impact both parents, impacting mothers’ occupational balance to a greater degree.Significance Occupational therapists’ knowledge could be utilised to increase awareness of the importance of occupational balance within health services and improve mothers’ occupational balance.https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/11038128.2022.2046154Cross-sectional studyoccupational balance questionnaire (OBQ11)working parents in Sweden
spellingShingle Sara Uthede
Ida Nilsson
Petra Wagman
Carita Håkansson
Lisette Farias
Occupational balance in parents of pre-school children: Potential differences between mothers and fathers
Scandinavian Journal of Occupational Therapy
Cross-sectional study
occupational balance questionnaire (OBQ11)
working parents in Sweden
title Occupational balance in parents of pre-school children: Potential differences between mothers and fathers
title_full Occupational balance in parents of pre-school children: Potential differences between mothers and fathers
title_fullStr Occupational balance in parents of pre-school children: Potential differences between mothers and fathers
title_full_unstemmed Occupational balance in parents of pre-school children: Potential differences between mothers and fathers
title_short Occupational balance in parents of pre-school children: Potential differences between mothers and fathers
title_sort occupational balance in parents of pre school children potential differences between mothers and fathers
topic Cross-sectional study
occupational balance questionnaire (OBQ11)
working parents in Sweden
url https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/11038128.2022.2046154
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