Maternal Perceptions of the Conditions of Happiness across the Life-Cycles of Their Children
Kai Sook Chung , Mee Sook Yoo , Su Hong Park , Eun Sil Choi
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to examine the differences in maternal perceptions of mothers in regards to the conditions of happiness across the life-cycles of their children. The participants consisted of a total of 961 women who were the mothers of preschool children, school aged children, and adolescents. The mothers completed a questionnaire on the perceptions of the conditions of happiness which consisted of a total of 56 items. The results of this study revealed that mothers in their 20`s and 30`s, with high levels of education, and on high incomes were more likely to have high expectations regarding most of the conditions of happiness compared to mothers in their 40`s and 50`s, with lower levels of education, and on low incomes. In addition, the results further revealed that mothers perceived that ``children grow up well and healthy`` as being the most important factor in their happiness regardless of the life cycles of their children. In particular, mothers with younger children tended to give greater priority to a close mother-child relationship in their happiness. However, when mothers` demographic variables were controlled, there were no differences in maternal perceptions of the conditions of happiness across the life-cycles of their children. The implications of parent education and the directions of following research were also discussed.
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