Parenting Stress and Competence, Parent-Child Relationship, and Child Behavior Problems: The Role of Satellite Baby Experience Among Chinese Immigrants in New York City
Abstract
There has been a unique form of movement in Chinese immigrant communities, whereby American-born babies, often referred to as “satellite babies,” are sent by their parents to their extended families in China and returned to the United States at school ages. Substantial research has revealed the negative effects of parent-child separation on children and parents, which, however, have been less studied using empirical data. This dissertation uses quantitative data from a sample of 200 Chinese immigrant parents in New York City to examine satellite baby experience, parenting and child behavior outcomes. The findings show that the satellite baby experience is negatively associated with parenting competence, parenting stress, and child internalizing behavior problems. Analyses also suggest that parenting stress significantly mediates the relationship between the satellite baby experience and child internalizing behavior problems. For parents with satellite baby experience, less parenting stress reduces child internalizing behavior problems. And child gender, social support, and parents’ education and employment status are significant moderators in the relationships between the satellite baby experience and some of the dependent variables. Parents with satellite baby experience have better parenting outcomes if the child is a boy, parents have less than high school education, or parents are employed. Additionally, parents with satellite baby experience are associated with more child externalizing behavior problems if they receive high level social support. The findings provide important implications for policymakers and social work practitioners to provide culturally sensitive parenting services and social support to help parents improve parenting competence and reduce the negative impact on families with satellite babies.
Subject Area
Social work|Developmental psychology|Behavioral psychology
Recommended Citation
Sun, Naishuo, "Parenting Stress and Competence, Parent-Child Relationship, and Child Behavior Problems: The Role of Satellite Baby Experience Among Chinese Immigrants in New York City" (2023). ETD Collection for Fordham University. AAI30425200.
https://research.library.fordham.edu/dissertations/AAI30425200
