Parents’ Sense of Community, Social Support, and Shared Parenting Beliefs: The Role of Neighborhood Characteristics.

Introduction

Relationships with caring nonparental adults positively impacts children (Dubois et al., 2011) and decreases parenting stress (Griggs et al., 2013). Not all families, however, have equal access (Putnam, 2015) resulting in scant support, placing children at risk for negative developmental outcomes (e.g., criminality; Markowitz & Salvatore, 2012) and parents at risk for stress and depression (Huang et al., 2014). Frequently, parents are gatekeepers to children’s relationships (Kesselring et al., 2012), but may not foster this type of support. For instance, perception of safety within a community impacts the amount of time children spend interacting with other adults. The current study examines whether neighborhood characteristics (e.g., living in a public housing development) impact parents’ openness to other adults sharing in their parenting, sense of community, and social network support.

Method

Participants included 425 caregivers (66% female; 23-70 years old; mostly Non-Hispanic) of minor children. Survey questions included demographic information, neighborhood characteristics (i.e. urbanicity, living in a public housing development, living where eviction is possible, living in a neighborhood where there are gangs or illegal drugs, having moved two or more times in the last 12 months, and experiencing homelessness), sense of community (Peterson et al., 2008; e.g., “I belong in my neighborhood.”), social network support (e.g., “The adults in my social network all watch out for each other’s kids.”), and shared parenting beliefs (Kesselring et al., 2012; e.g., “The upbringing of my children is only my concern and, if applicable, that of my partner/spouse.”). Regression analyses examined the influence of neighborhood characteristics on sense of community, social network support, and sharing parenting beliefs while controlling for correlated covariates (i.e., ethnicity, education, income, and single parenthood).

Results

Single-parenthood (β=-.142, p<.05), living in public housing (β=.108, p<.05), living where eviction is possible (β=-.155, p<.05) and experiencing homelessness (β=.177, p<.05) were associated with sense of community. Income (β=.126, p<.05), urbanicity (β=.146, p<.01), and living in public housing (β=.130, p<.01) were associated with social network support. Level of education (β=.214, p<.001) and living in a neighborhood where there are gangs or illegal drugs (β=.102, p<.05) were associated with shared parenting beliefs.

Conclusion

Understanding how neighborhood characteristics influence parents’ sense of community, social network support, and shared parenting beliefs can help identify which parents are less likely to foster relationships with other adults in support of their children. Helping parents trust and seek other adults could provide an avenue for creating positive connections for families.