Social support, acculturation stress, and parenting stress among marriage-migrant women

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to identify the relationships between social support, acculturation stress, and the parenting stress of marriage-migrant women. Background: Marriage-migrant women with preschool children appear to experience acculturation and parenting stress. Persistent stress conditions could lead to serious psychological problems. Nevertheless, little is known about the relationship between their stress and social support alleviating stress. Methods: A questionnaire survey was conducted among 284 marriage-migrant women with preschool children in South Korea, using a questionnaire translated into Chinese, Vietnamese, English, and Korean. A trained research assistant read the questionnaire and asked participants to provide their responses. Results: A hierarchical regression analysis revealed that acculturation stress was associated with parenting stress among marriage-migrant women with preschool children, and that acculturation stress was mostly associated with social support. A Sobel test indicated that the effect of social support on parenting stress significantly declined when acculturation stress was treated as a mediator of that relationship. Acculturation stress was a mediator between social support and parenting stress. Conclusion: Nurses must understand the dual stress of acculturation and parenting among marriage-migrant women with preschool children. Furthermore, efforts to support the parenting of marriage-migrant women with preschool children must consider acculturation stress as a major risk factor of parenting stress. Mental health nurses are recommended to conceive programs that reduce the dual stress of acculturation and parenting, which could help improve the mental health of this group.