Parenting styles of taiwanese single mothers whose eldest child is between the ages of seven and seventeen

Abstract

This study addresses parenting styles of Taiwanese single mothers, focusing on interactions between cultural factors and their approach to parenting, and how Taiwanese single mothers define and perceive their parenting styles. Using phenomenological and narrative analysis, eight participants (four divorced, four widowed) were interviewed in-depth in Taiwan, using Chinese and Taiwanese. The study identified their self-awareness as parents in terms of behaviors, beliefs, attitudes and values as well as interactions with their children, including the use of discipline. Additional issues addressed include financial circumstances, social and government resources available to single mothers, their emotional management/coping strategies and problem solving abilities, their use of self-talk/proverbs, and their children’s personalities in relation to family status and patriarchal cultural attitudes about single-mother households.