Parenting Styles and Satisfaction among Working Women in Kedah, Malaysia

Currently, parenting style has been considered as an important issue for the discussion as good parenting style would positively impact on children’s overall development. The study explores parenting styles and parenting satisfaction among working women in their families. The study was conducted ten villages in Kedah one of the state of Malaysia.  Participants consist of working women who have children under 15 years old.  A total of one hundred working women were selected as the respondents for this study using purposive sampling method. Both quantitative and qualitative methods were employed in this study. Parenting style and satisfaction among working women were measured using seventeen statements. The results revealed that most of working mother follows permissive parenting styles who build warm relationship with children, responsive to children needs and low in control towards their children. The results also showed that most of working mothers are satisfied with their parenting style in terms of amount of time they spend for their children and as the outcome the behaviors they receive from their children. Furthermore, the in-depth interviews findings showed that majority of working women are satisfied to follow an effective parenting style by contributing their intellectual and financial resources to their children education, nutrition and intellectual development.