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Parental burnout results from chronic stress in parenting, and it can be accompanied by harmful behaviors such as parental neglect and violence (Mikolajczak & Roskam, 2018). Network analysis examines psychological phenomena within a system of its constituents, and thus it is promising for understanding the distinct features of parental burnout and behaviors related to it. Recently, Blanchard et al. (2021) conducted the first network analysis of parental burnout and related harmful behaviors in the family context, but did so using an outdated measure and conceptualization of parental burnout. In the present study, in a sample of French-speaking parents (N = 3144, from five different previous studies), we aimed to investigate how each of the four features in the new conceptualization of parental burnout (i.e., emotional exhaustion, feeling fed up, emotional distance, and contrast with the previous parental self) interact with one another and with parental neglect and violence in a network system. In this preregistered reanalysis, we generated two network models commonly used with cross-sectional data: a Graphical Gaussian Model and a Directed Acyclic Graph. Our results point to emotional exhaustion and feeling fed up as key driving forces of the network structure, while emotional distance appears as a critical feature tying parental burnout with parental neglect and violence., Author(s): Rana Begum Kalkan [sup.1] [sup.2] , M. Annelise Blanchard [sup.2] [sup.3] , Moïra Mikolajczak [sup.2] , Isabelle Roskam [sup.2] , Alexandre Heeren [sup.2] [sup.3] [sup.4] Author Affiliations: (1) grid.5596.f, [...]

Burnout, while historically considered a work-related condition, can be associated with parenting where it can have direct impacts upon parental outcomes and one's personal resources such as mental health. However, little is known about the domain-incongruent effects of burnout and thus whether parental burnout can manifest within the workplace. The current study uses longitudinal data collected from 499 parents over three intervals across an 8-month period to explore two possible mechanisms. Firstly, a direct relationship is explored by considering whether parental burnout provides incremental validity above job burnout in the prediction of three work outcomes: job satisfaction, turnover intentions, and counterproductive work behaviors. Secondly, it is explored whether depression mediates the relationship between parental burnout and work outcomes. Findings suggest parental burnout may have limited impacts upon work outcomes, providing the impetus for a new direction of research to better understand whether or how burnout in one domain of life can influence the outcomes in other life domains., Author(s): Thomas Rhys Evans [sup.1] , Isabelle Roskam [sup.2] , Florence Stinglhamber [sup.2] , Moïra Mikolajczak [sup.2] Author Affiliations: (1) grid.36316.31, 0000 0001 0806 5472, School of Human Sciences, University [...]

Emotional competence (EC) has been documented as one of the most influential resource to protect parents from parental burnout (PB). However, the dimensions of EC have inconsistent effects across studies: while intrapersonal EC consistently had a protective effect on PB, interpersonal EC was paradoxically documented both as a risk factor and a protective factor. Relying on third-variable effect analyses on two independent datasets (842 Belgian parents and 377 Polish parents), this pre-registered study found that (1) intrapersonal EC drives the protective effect of interpersonal EC, and (2) after being adjusted for intrapersonal EC, interpersonal EC does not have significant effect on PB in the Polish sample and even becomes detrimental in the Belgian sample. These findings highlight the importance of examining the unique effect of each EC dimension while controlling for the others. Besides, it also implicates interventions aimed at improving EC to reduce PB should focus on intrapersonal EC., Author(s): Gao-Xian Lin [sup.1] , Isabelle Roskam [sup.1] , Moïra Mikolajczak [sup.1] Author Affiliations: (1) grid.7942.8, 0000 0001 2294 713X, Psychological Sciences Research Institute, Department of Psychology, Catholic University of [...]

Parenting perfectionism, especially the dimension of perfectionistic concerns-preoccupation with self-criticism including concern over mistakes and doubts about own behaviors-, has been shown to be a weighty factor for parental burnout. Drawing on the Balance between Risks and Resources (BR.sup.2) theory of parental burnout, this paper examines whether emotional competence could moderate/buffer the effect of parenting perfectionism on parental burnout. We investigated this question in two independent samples of parents collected in Belgium (N = 347) and Poland (N = 377). The results of both studies show that emotional competence cancels out the detrimental effect of perfectionistic concerns on parental burnout. Beyond its contribution to parenting perfectionism and emotional competence literatures, the present article also provides further evidence of the potential of the BR.sup.2 theory of parental burnout., Author(s): Gao-Xian Lin [sup.1] , Dorota Szczygiel [sup.2] , Logan Hansotte [sup.1] , Isabelle Roskam [sup.1] , Moïra Mikolajczak [sup.1] Author Affiliations: (1) grid.7942.8, 0000 0001 2294 713X, Psychological Sciences [...]

Compliments are verbal acts that take place on daily basis between at least two individuals (the complimenter and the complimentee). The frequency and effects of compliments contrast with the scarcity of research devoted to this issue. So far, compliments have mainly been studied through the lens of educational psychology, with the aim of examining their effects on students' learning and performance. These studies concluded that compliments are relatively ineffective educational tools. For their part, the linguists were interested in the wording of compliments and the cross-cultural issues. Our literature review aims to enlarge the focus of research in this domain by considering the compliment from other perspectives, such as social psychology, personality, emotions, social cognition and communication. This article aims to provide a theoretical framework that (1) integrates the disparate elements of the literature on compliments, (2) accounts for the antecedents and consequences of the compliment, as well as the moderating effect of contextual and personal variables (in the complimenter and the complementee), (3) explains why compliments do not always have the desired effect and why well-intended compliments can have negative consequences on the receiver, and (4) stimulates future research by identifying gaps in the literature and suggesting a number of hypotheses., Author(s): Jessica S. Morton [sup.1] , Moïra Mikolajczak [sup.1] , Olivier Luminet [sup.1] [sup.2] Author Affiliations: (1) grid.7942.8, 0000 0001 2294 713X, Faculté des Sciences Psychologiques et de l'Education, UCLouvain, [...]

Parental burnout (PB)--a condition characterized by intense exhaustion related to parenting, emotional distancing from one's children, and a loss of parental fulfillment--has received increasing attention in recent years, even more since the worldwide COVID-19 crisis and the confinement of parents with their children. This crisis put the spotlight on parents' suffering, and the need to better understand parental burnout and how to best assess and treat it emerged as a priority. This brief article introduces the Thematic Issue of "New Directions in Child and Adolescent Development" focused on the measurement of parental burnout across various regions of the world. It briefly reviews the concept of parental burnout, its phenomenological experience, its etiology and consequences, and its measurement.

This study aimed to examine the validity of the Brazilian-Portuguese version of the Parental Burnout Assessment (PBA), the current gold-standard measure of parental burnout (PB). We surveyed parents in Portugal (N = 407) and Brazil (N = 301). We (a) compared the factor structure of the Brazilian-Portuguese version with the original structure of the PBA, (b) tested the adequacy of a second-order factor structure, (c) evaluated invariance across gender and countries, (d) examined reliability, and (e) evaluated whether PB levels are related to gender, satisfaction with life, and parental self-efficacy (PSE). Results provided evidence for the validity of the Brazilian-Portuguese PBA and its four facets. Factor models supported the use of both individual facet scores and a global PB score. The structures tested were invariant across countries and gender, and all factors had good reliability. Relations with PSE, life satisfaction, and gender provided initial evidence for validity, and suggested a possible influence of intensive motherhood models.

Parental burnout is a severe exhaustion syndrome resulting from lasting exposure to overwhelming parenting stress. The current gold-standard instrument to evaluate parental burnout is the Parental Burnout Assessment (PBA), which has recently been used in the International Investigation of Parental Burnout (IIPB), a global study on the prevalence of parental burnout. The IIPB has stimulated worldwide interest in the construct of parental burnout, but efforts are still needed to validate the PBA in different languages. The current study is aimed at examining the psychometric properties of the Persian translation of the PBA (PBA-Persian). The PBA-Persian was administered to 448 Iranian parents along with the Kansas Parental Satisfaction Scale and the Well-Being Index (WHO-5). Results showed that the PBA-Persian version is a promising tool, but the "Emotional Distancing" subscale should be used with caution. The PBA-Persian had good criterion validity vis-à-vis parental satisfaction and well-being. Future research is needed on gender invariance.

This study--the first study on parental burnout in an Arabic speaking country in the Middle East--aimed to examine the psychometric properties of the Lebanese translation of the Parental Burnout Assessment (PBA-Lebanese). The PBA-Lebanese was administered to 200 Lebanese parents (67% mothers). The results showed parental burnout is a valid construct relevant to Lebanese culture. In particular, we replicated the original four-factor structure of the PBA and we tested a second order factor structure through confirmatory factor analysis. The first and second order factor model fitted the data, and reliability indexes were high ([alpha] = 0.97 for exhaustion, 0.95 for contrast, 0.92 for feelings of being fed up, 0.80 for emotional distancing and 0.98 for the global score). There was no significant gender difference in the prevalence of parental burnout, but mean levels were higher in mothers than in fathers. Both less educated parents and single parents reported higher parental burnout, pointing to the possible role of education and social relations as protective factors for Lebanese parents.

The concept of parental burnout only recently gained the attention of researchers, mainly through the International Investigation of Parental Burnout (IIPB), a 40-country study of the prevalence of PB around the world. Based on the current gold-standard instrument to evaluate parental burnout, that is the Parental Burnout Assessment (PBA), the present research investigates the psychometric properties of the Romanian version of the PBA (PBA-RO) in a sample of 650 Romanian parents (418 mothers), whose age ranged from 18 to 65 (M[subscript age] = 36.60, SD = 5.73). First, we examined internal consistency and construct validity. The results displayed good reliability and the confirmatory factor analyses replicated both expected first- and second-order four-factor models. Second, the positive association between parental burnout and perfectionism, as well as the negative relation between parental burnout and both life satisfaction and resilience, confirmed the PBA-RO's concurrent validity. Third, we replicated the low correlations with sociodemographic characteristics (i.e., age, educational level, family type, number of children, children's age, number of women in the household, number of men in the household, hours spent with children, having a paid professional activity, and neighborhood). The results were discussed according to the Romanian cultural context of parenting. Given the good psychometric properties of the PBA-RO, we concluded that it can successfully assess parental burnout for this population.

This study examined the factorial structure of the Polish version of the Parental Burnout Assessment (PBA-PL) and its relation with other variables, previously shown to be antecedents or outcomes of parental burnout. The PBA-PL was administered to a total sample of 2,130 parents along with other instruments depending on the study. Factorial analyses of the PBA-PL supported both the original four-factor model of parental burnout (exhaustion related to parenting, feelings of being fed up with parenting, emotional distancing from one's children, and contrast with previous parental self) and a second-order model with a global parental burnout underlying the four first-order factors. Both subscale and global scores were reliable. Significant correlations were found between PBA-PL and neuroticism, emotional intelligence, maladaptive perfectionism, perceived social support, depressive symptoms, marital satisfaction, and life satisfaction. PBA-PL also predicted both parental neglect and parental violence beyond socio-demographic factors, depression, and job burnout.

Objective: The aim of the current preregistered cross‐sectional study was to examine whether in parents with high anxious (characterized with a negative model of self), dismissing (characterized with a negative model of others), and fearful attachment styles (characterized with a negative model of self and of others), the link between parental burnout and violence toward the offspring is stronger. Background: Past research has shown that parental burnout exacerbates violence toward the offspring, but the correlation is not perfect (r =.49), which suggests that not all parents in burnout out are violent, and that moderators might therefore be at play. Method: Participants (N = 794) answered an online questionnaires one time, through Prolific. Parental burnout, violence, and attachment styles were measured through the Parental Burnout Assessment, the Parental Violence Scale, and the Relationship Questionnaire. Multiple regression analyses were performed to test the moderating role of anxious, dismissing, and fearful attachment styles. Results: Parental burnout and all attachment styles are significantly related to violence. However, only fearful attachment style significantly potentiated the relation between parental burnout and violence. Conclusion: In parents with high fearful attachment style, the link between parental burnout and violence toward the offspring is stronger. Results are discussed in light of the role of internal models of self and others. Implications: Anxious, dismissing, and fearful attachment styles should systematically be investigated when dealing with burnt out parents, as some may be associated with a higher risk of violence toward the offspring. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite its significant growth over the past fifteen years, research on parental burnout is just beginning to explore the relationships of the syndrome with child behavior. Previous research with adolescents has shown the existence of associations between parental burnout and internalizing and externalizing behaviors in the offspring. The current study is an attempt to (i) replicate this preliminary evidence specifically among Chilean preschool children and (ii) explore the mediating/moderating effects of positive parenting that may be involved in these putative associations. A sample of 383 Chilean mothers participated in this cross-sectional online study. The results confirmed the associations between parental burnout and child internalizing and externalizing behaviors. We also observed that positive parenting was a mediator in the relationship linking parental burnout and the child's internalizing (full mediation) and externalizing (partial mediation) behaviors. Positive parenting also partially mediated the association between the child's externalizing behavior and parental burnout. Our results further suggested that the child's externalizing behavior was possibly a more substantial contributing factor to parental burnout than the child's internalizing behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mindfulness- and self-compassion-based programs have been shown to reduce parental stress, and levels of mindfulness and self-compassion have been shown to be negatively related to parental burnout (PB) factors. Based on these results, the present study aimed to test the efficacy of an 8-week mindfulness and compassion-based group approach (MCA) (n = 29) compared with the existing Parenting in Balance Program (PBP) (n = 25). Parents were blindly enrolled in one of the two conditions. Parental burnout, parental neglect and violence, irritability, parental balance between stress-enhancing and stress-alleviating factors, hair cortisol, and mindful parenting and self-compassion were measured before, after, and three months after the end of the program. All the measured outcomes positively changed over time in both conditions, except for irritability. Large effect sizes were found for parental burnout, parental neglect and violence, and mindful parenting and self-compassion. However, contrary to our hypothesis, the decrease in parental burnout in the MCA was not significantly related to an increase in mindful parenting nor self-compassion. Furthermore, certain participants from the MCA group reported higher levels of parental burnout after the intervention. The absence of specific effects between MCA and PBP programs suggests the presence of common effectiveness factors. Therefore, future studies need to analyze specific variables that may explain differential effects of programs on parental burnout levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Parenthood is one of the most important social roles, but the consequences of becoming a parent are not always as expected. It is estimated that in developed countries, up to 5%–14% of parents regret their decision to have children and if they could turn back time, they would choose childlessness. While such a situation can have serious consequences for the entire family system, our knowledge of the causes and consequences of regretting parenthood is very limited. Beyond the possible taboo, one factor that is certainly responsible for the small number of studies on regretting parenthood is the lack of questionnaires to measure its severity. In the present study, we decided to fill this gap and developed a new questionnaire—the Parenthood Regret Scale. In a series of three studies (total N = 2,994) conducted on English-speaking, French-speaking, and Polish-speaking samples, we analyzed the factor structure, reliability, and validity of the new scale. The results confirmed that the Parenthood Regret Scale has a single-factor structure, which has been replicated in the three languages. Furthermore, the analyses confirmed that higher parenthood regret is negatively related to life satisfaction, and positively related to the severity of depressive symptoms and parental burnout. In light of the results obtained, it can be concluded that the Parenthood Regret Scale is a valid and reliable measure that can help advance research on an almost unknown issue of great social importance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Parental burnout (PB) is a chronic stress-related condition resulting from long-lasting exposure to overwhelming parenting stress. Previous studies showing the seriousness of this condition stressed the urgent need to provide researchers and practitioners with effective assessment tools. Validated PB measures are the Parental Burnout Inventory (PBI) and the Parental Burnout Assessment (PBA). The good psychometric properties of these instruments have been replicated across different samples and countries, but thresholds for identifying impairing PB levels (i.e., cutoff scores) have not yet been established. The present study aims to fill this gap by adopting a multi-informant and multimethod approach to a sample of 192 burned-out and control parents. PBI and PBA cutoffs were derived from the combination of several PB indicators, based on a preregistered analysis strategy. Results identified a score of 74.6 (95% confidence interval (CI) = [69.48–79.68]) for the PBI and 86.3 (95% CI = [79.49–93.03]) for the PBA as indicators of the most severe PB levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Parental burnout (PB), an exhaustion disorder related to parenting, is receiving increasing attention. In this article we aim to take stock of the findings accumulated about PB over the past 15 years. We review and organize the literature around four questions: (a) What is parental burnout? (b) Which factors are associated with an increased risk of PB? (c) What are the consequences of PB? (d) What are the current treatment options? In order to answer these questions, the article includes a correlational meta-analysis (k = 49, N total = 35,170) of all empirical studies published on PB up to July 2021. In the last part of the article, we provide a road map for future research by pinpointing particularly promising paths and methodological improvements needed to draw stronger conclusions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although early work on parental burnout in the 1980s did not link parental burnout to specific parenting situations, the idea that parents affected by specific vulnerability factors were particularly at risk of burnout quickly emerged. Based on the etiological model of parental burnout (i.e., the balance between risks and resources), the objective of this study was to investigate if there were specific vulnerability factors that significantly increase the risk of parental burnout. 2563 parents participated in the study. We compared parents with a child with special needs (n = 25), parents who had adopted a child (n = 130), and single parents (n = 109), to strictly matched control groups of parents. Parents with a child with special needs displayed higher burnout and lower balance between risk and resources than the control group; parents with an adopted child had similar levels of both parental burnout and balance; and single parents had higher parental burnout but similar balance. Parents who combined specific several vulnerability factors were at greater risk of burnout. Single parenthood and adoption do not in themselves trigger a process leading de facto to other risk factors, but having a child with special needs does. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]