Comparison of Parenting Styles in Parents of 3-5-Year-Old Kindergarten Children with and without Developmental Delay

 Considering the effective role of the environment, family, and especially parents in the development of children, this study was conducted to compare parenting styles in parents of 3-5 year-old kindergarten children with and without developmental delay.

This descriptive cross-sectional study was performed on 280 children aged 3 to 5 years and their parents by multi-stage-cluster sampling (based on the division of the Welfare Organization) in kindergartens in Tehran, Iran, in 2019. Parents completed the following questionnaires to collect the data: a demographic, Baumrind's parenting styles, and the Ages and Stages Questionnaires (ASQ). The data were analyzed using SPSS software version 19.0.

The mean age of children was 3.98+ 0.71 years, and the rate of developmental delay was observed in 9% (n=25). The highest frequency of developmental delay was observed in the age group of 3 years and in the field of problem-solving and the lowest developmental delay was observed in the age group of 5 years and the personal-social domain. 95.7% of mothers and 91.1% of fathers had an authoritative parenting style, 1.4% and 3.6% had permissive parenting style and 2.9%, and 5.4% had authoritarian style, respectively. Mothers of children without developmental delays had higher levels of education (p <0.05). In addition, fathers who had an authoritative parenting style had a higher level of education (p <0.05). The results showed no significant difference between parenting style in parent’s children with and without developmental delay.

According to the results of the present study, parenting styles show no differences between children with and without developmental delay. Further research is recommended.