유아기 자녀를 둔 어머니의 양육 경험의 특성과 기대

Parenting experiences and expectations of mothers with preschoolers

The present study explored the nature of parenting experiences encountered and expectations held by the mothers of young children. The subjects consisted of 130 mothers who had children aged from two to six years. Several open-ended questions created by the researcher in face-to-face interviews were employed to collect the data, and they were analyzed using the frequency and inductive analysis. The results were as follows: First, mothers considered their parenting experiences derived mostly from parent-child relationships and the child him/herself rather than the mother herself. Second, mothers anticipated that understanding and love for their children were the two most important factors engendering a desirable parenting attitude as well as mother s healthy emotion and self-control. The implications for future parent education and limitations based on the results were also discussed.