Factors of pedagogical (in)competence of parents for the parenting role

Abstract

Starting with the theoretical considerations regarding the perception of parental competence in the context of changes typical of modern society and the challenging tasks faced by parents, this paper intends to examine particular factors of self-evaluation of pedagogical (in)competence of parents for the parenting role. The sample comprised 575 subjects, including mothers and fathers of pre-schoolers. The attained results demonstrated that mothers perceive themselves as more competent in the parenting role, regardless of the child's sex, and that parents whose children live with both parents deem themselves more competent. Furthermore, we concluded that financial status and whether the child is undergoing pre-school education are additional determinants of parents' pedagogical competence for the parenting role. The following factors were of little relevance in the study sample: the living environment of the child, parent age, number of children in the family and parental educational level. The obtained results are important for shedding light on parental actions in raising children, as well as for underlining possible changes in behaviour and opinions.