A new study has shown that when parents act more positive with one child over another, or act differently in any way, it can greatly affect the children in the family, not just the child receiving negative feedback. The research also found that if the parents experience more risks, this will impact how differently they treat their children. Differential parenting can greatly impact the dynamics of a family, causing the relationships within the family to become damaged or fraught.
In previous studies into this matter, differential parenting has been analysed in terms of sibling pairs which has made it tricky to determine how the dynamics of the entire family are affected, both as a whole and for the individual children. This study has opened that up further to delve into the dynamics of up to four children per family, using statistical techniques to show the differences between them. The research came from both the reports from the mother on her relationships with her children and from observations taken from the home environment.
Researchers created an in-depth risk index to help determine the other circumstances surrounding the levels of stress in the home, which included the mother’s current or past life – factors included single parenting, past abuse, levels of safety in the home and a low income. It was noted that those who had high levels of stressful risk factors were more likely to treat their children differently, compared to those whose lives were less stressful. There was also a varying amount of warmth and affection in the mothers who showed more risk factors, such as how often they were irritable or angry towards their children. The study found that differential parenting had a larger impact on the family as a whole than it did on the individual child in question.
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