Educando a Nuestros Hijos: Examining Latinx Parental Stress Factors and Parental Engagement in Head Start Preschools

This study sought to understand Latinx parental stress factors as they relate to three types of parental engagement (PE; foundational education, school participation, and supplemental education) in preschool. Stress was examined in the form of global stress and acculturative stress (English competence pressure and pressure to acculturate). Spanish- and English-speaking Latinx parents ( N = 189) of children enrolled in Head Start completed self-report surveys. Hierarchical linear regression results demonstrated that global stress significantly predicted foundational education and supplemental education, but not school participation behaviors. English competence pressure did not significantly predict any type of PE and pressure to acculturate only significantly predicted supplemental education behaviors. Findings have implications for developing family-school partnerships with Latinx parents of preschool children.