Parenting Perceptions and Experience among African Immigrants

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the perception and experience of parenting among African immigrants. Both African immigrants and African refugees residing in the Twin Cities metropolitan area were invited to participate in a focus group and complete the Parent- Acceptance-Rejection-Questionnaire (PARQ). The objectives of this study were to 1) Determine the parenting styles of African immigrant parents, 2) Examine African parents’ lived parenting experience to include identification of strengths and challenges, and 3) Establish the association demographic characteristics (e.g., age, degree of acculturation, gender, marital status, socio- economic status, immigration status) have upon African parents’ perception of their role as parents. Data from the PARQ surveys were analyzed using descriptive statistics, and focus group qualitative data were analyzed using grounded theory method. The quantitative results demonstrated that participants reported they cared for their children’s essential needs, communicated concerns with their children, and strongly rejected questionnaire items which included utilizing excessive punishment and humiliation of their children. The qualitative results supported many similarities and few notable differences from current literature results; but included differences with how the participants felt about the safety of the United States and desire to assimilate to American customs.