Correlations among Working Mothers' Satisfaction with Non-maternal Infant Care, Social Support from Others, and Parenting Efficacy

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to investigate working mothers' satisfaction with non-maternal infant care, social support, and the relationships thereof with variables including parenting efficacy. METHODS: A total of 116 working mothers who had experiences of infant non-maternal care were recruited from online communities of working mothers, and 93 participants were ultimately included in this study. Data were collected using self-report questionnaires in March 2018. Descriptive statistics, ANOVA and Pearson correlation coefficients were used for analysis. RESULTS: Satisfaction with non-maternal care showed positive correlations with social support from others (r=0.52, p < 0.001), and parenting efficacy (r=0.39, p < 0.001). There was a significant positive correlation between social support from others and parenting efficacy (r=0.32, p=0.002). Satisfaction with non-maternal care was relatively high (86.27%), and it was highest when non-maternal care was provided by the maternal grandparents. The mean score for social support from others was 36.49±8.86. CONCLUSION: To increase satisfaction with non-maternal care, education for non-maternal caregivers and social support programs for working mothers are required.