Influence of Parenting Styles on Development of Children Aged Three to Six Years Old
Sutham Nanthamongkolchai PhD*, Chutima Ngaosusit MSc*, Chokchai Munsawaengsub MD*
Affiliation : * Department of Family Health, Faculty of Public Health, Mahidol University
Objective : To investigate the influences of parenting styles on development of children aged three to six years.
Materials and Methods : A cross-sectional study was conducted in 360 children and their parents selected by
multi-stage random sampling. The data were collected from July 24th to August 31st, 2004. The Denver II test kit
and the scale by Baumrind D were used to test the child development and parenting styles respectively. A
questionnaire was used to collect the family and child factors. Data were analyzed by frequency distribution
and Multiple logistic regression with the significant level set at p-value of <0.05).
Results : Parenting styles had significant influences on child development (p-value < 0.05). Children raised
with a mixed parenting style had a 1.9 times higher chance of having delayed development compared with
those with democratic parenting style. In addition, significant family and child factors for explaining child
development were family type, mother’s education, father’s occupation, relationship within the family, nutri-
tional status and sex.
Conclusion : Parenting styles had a significant influence on child development. The children raised with
mixed parenting style had a 1.9 times higher chance of having delayed development compared to those whose
parents used democratic parenting style. Therefore, the parents should rear their children by using the
democratic parenting style that leads to the age-appropriate development child.
Keywords : Parenting styles, Children aged three to six years, Development
