Comparing Anglo-Australian and Aboriginal Populations: Children's Independent Mobility Caught in a Feedback Loop of Social Judgement and Parental Burnout?
SOUTHERN CROSS UNIVERSITY
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Comparing Anglo-Australian and Aboriginal Populations: Children's Independent Mobility Caught in a Feedback Loop of Social Judgement and Parental Burnout?
When Bronfenbrenner developed the ecological system theory (EST) in 1979, children had an astounding range of independent mobility (Darling, 2007). Children used to walk and cycle between family-microsystems and within the larger meso- and macrosystem of the school, the neighbourhood, and the town independently, where they were allowed to play unsupervised (Valetine, 2004). However, children's independent mobility (CIM), almost all over the world, has decreased considerably (Fyhri et al., 2011; Shaw et al., 2015). This study aims at exploring cultural differences between Aboriginal and Anglo-Australian parents due to initially very different parenting approaches (Enembaru, 2000). One explanation for reduced independent mobility is that concerns about ideal development have led to more intensive parenting styles (Wall, 2010); therefore, supervision of children has increased overall. Parental exhaustion and burnout have also risen as part of these more demanding parenting practices (Hubert & Aujoulat, 2018; Sorkkila & Aunola, 2019). Despite some efforts to make neighbourhoods safer (Shaw et al., 2015), CIM has not returned. This research is exploring the idea that moral attitudes and prejudice (Doolan et al., 2000) about CIM are holding parents in a feedback loop of apprehension about being judged; thereby restricting CIM - which in turn leads to more over-parenting and exhaustion, generating further moral judgements towards others.
In Australia, microsystems for children today could be interpreted as parallel network systems (Neal & Neal, 2013); one being home, school, other activities like music and sports. These are separated through parental guidance and accompaniment, noticeably reducing Australian children's independence (Carver et al., 2013; Darling, 2007; Malone, 2007; Rudner & Malone, 2011; Schoeppe et al., 2015). Australian Aboriginal culture, however, has a very different approach to childrearing; the freedom to explore, independence, and a collective sense of watching over the kids are appropriate and desirable (Enembaru, 2000; Kearin, 2000). Empowering children means to encourage their sense of responsibility, as opposed to over-parenting (Australian Institute of Family Studies, 2020).
Playing, walking, and cycling outside of the home and the school environment holds excellent benefits: it promotes social and motor development (Marzi & Reimers, 2018). As children explore, they learn about space and time, weather and seasons, develop resilience, help others, learn to trust and mistrust, coordinate, communicate, and critically evaluate new situations (Malone, 2007).
Geographies of children have changed for many reasons: evidently, towns and cities have grown bigger. Occasionally, parents choose schools that are further away over district schools. Higher ownership of cars is increasing transportation, a shift in practicality and safety concerns over traffic implies driving children causing further traffic (Fyhri et al., 2011; Rudner & Malone, 2011).
There have been considerable psychological trends impacting the restrictions of movement: increased parental fears including stranger danger fears (Crawford et al., 2017; Foster et al., 2014; Francis et al., 2017; VicHealth, 2015), and increased perceptions of disapproval from the social network when children are permitted independent mobility (Bennets et al., 2017; Crawford et al., 2017; Francis et al., 2017). Choosing non-district schools reflects greater parental concern over education for their children (Malone, 2007; Wall, 2010). Children need to be supervised more and better; if left alone, they are perceived as neglected, endangered or developmentally deprived (Franklin, 2011; Thomas et al., 2016; Tranter, 2006). Aboriginal children are especially vulnerable to moral judgements (Doolan et al., 2000) if seen independently playing in the streets (Australian Institute of Family Studies, 2020).
Psychology and child development research examined the negative consequences of neglect (Hildyard & Wolfe, 2002), bullying (Smith & Myron-Wilson, 1998), and under- stimulation (Farah et al., 2008). Fortunately, these childhood studies have added vital knowledge to childrearing. Equally, the availability of knowledge sharing on the internet has led to a change in parenting style in some social communities called intensive- and helicopter parenting (Bernstein & Triger, 2011; Franklin, 2011). This individualistic trend aims at raising the most advantaged child and fostering optimal development (Wall, 2010). Nevertheless, intensive parenting also increases uncertainties about being a good parent which intensifies stress and exhaustion in some parents (Hubert & Aujoulat, 2018; Sorkkila & Aunola, 2019; Wall, 2010). Parental burnout (Roskam et al., 2018) can be associated with intensive parenting featuring extremely child-focussed supervision, orchestrated or structured time, and parents are holding very high expectations of parenting.So far, there have been no studies with Australian Aboriginal parents concerning parental burnout. Their collective ways of childrearing and allowance of freedom and independent mobility (Enembaru, 2000; Kearin, 2000) might protect them from parental burnout.
CIM is diminishing, and parental stress increases, opening and maintaining a reinforcing feedback loop; parents are discouraged from leaving a child alone (Thomas et al., 2016), or letting the child play or walk outside autonomously (Malone, 2007). They make big decisions about the best learning environments possible (Wall, 2010) – meaning that the school and after-school activity is out of walking distance and disconnected from the neighbourhood. Additionally, parents are feeling judged by others for each decision they make (Hubert & Aujoulat, 2018; Sorkkila & Aunola, 2019).
The amount of research assessing children's change in independent mobility indicates a great interest to understand and reopen environments for our young. Projects to revive neighbourhoods took place, and parents' apprehensions have been surveyed. Despite adjustments in town planning and education about risks from familiar people compared to strangers, CIM patterns have not changed much (Foster et al., 2015; Francis et al., 2017; Shaw et al., 2015).
This study investigates the following research questions: Are parents holding their children back out of fear from being judged by others for giving them independence? Are there differences between Aboriginal and Anglo-Australian judgements? Is there is a link between parental burnout and how much independent mobility the child can realise? Parental burnout could be reduced if children were given more independent mobility. Would parents from different backgrounds like to see their children have more independence again considered the environment was safe?
Research Hypotheses
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Other parents hold negative moral judgements towards parents that allow children more independent mobility.
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There is a cultural difference in how people judge children's independent mobility.
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There are differences in judgements towards perceived cultural backgrounds of
children.
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Parents who give their children a lesser amount of independent mobility are more
prone to display symptoms of parental burnout.
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Anglo-Australian parents have a reduced desire to allow their children more
independent mobility compared to Aboriginal parents.
Methods
Participants
Participants from two cultural backgrounds that are living in suburban neighbourhoods will be recruited. We will obtain data from a group of Australian Aboriginal parents and a group of Anglo-Australian parents with children between 6 and 14 years old. Ideally, the research should be conducted in different states and locations in Australia. The sample will be selected via stratified random sampling from existing council survey lists. Exclusion criteria will be immigrant parents as they might bring a very different perspective which would need to be examined separately.
Procedure
The online questionnaires follow a specific order: first assessing demographics, then levels of CIM, followed by attitudes, next levels of parental burnout, and finally own experiences and willingness to change CIM patterns. All participants sign an informed consent form; they have the right to end the questionnaires at any stage; their contribution is entirely voluntary. Participants will be provided with a contact email if they wish to debrief afterwards, have further questions related to the items asked, and to have access to the study once it is published. These steps are essential since participants must be able to address ethical unease and concerns about prejudice as well as emotional consequences from the parent burnout questionnaires. Links with information about parental burnout and where to find support can be provided.
Materials
Demographic data collection
The participants fill in demographical data containing gender, age, family status, cultural identity, neighbourhood district, ages of children, and schools the children attend. CIM Questionnaire
A shortened parent questionnaire based on a study by Carver et al. (2013) will ask about the licences given to their children: (1) independent travel from home to school and back, (2) crossing main roads by themselves, (3) travelling to other places than school (shops, friends, relatives) within their neighbourhood, (4) travelling on local busses alone, (5) walking short distances near the home after sundown. Categorical data will be collected: 1 = ‘yes’ and 0 = ‘no’.
Vignette study assessing moral attitudes and perceptions of harm
This section will present a vignette study similar to a study conducted by Thomas et
al. (2016). Each participant will read four vignettes or scenes (see Appendix Table 1), one
from each age group, randomly mixed gender of the child, randomly assigned to an
experimental condition (see Appendix Table 2). The scene (Table 1) describes a child, what
the child is doing and for how long respectively how far the child is known to travel or be out
independently. The participants will value each vignette according to the experimental
condition (Table 2).
Parental Burnout Assessment (PBA)
Parents will fill out a partial parental burnout questionnaire (see Appendix Table 3) by Roskam et al. (2018). The survey will contain two items from each category (exhaustion, contrast in the parental-self, feelings of being fed up as a parent and emotional distancing from one's children). The items are rated specifying how often a parent feels a certain way (0 = never; 6 = every day) on a 7-point Likert scale.
Personal experiences and willingness to change
Finally, the participant will be asked about their independent mobility in childhood, personal convenience, if they would like their children to realise more independent mobility, and about their stress levels concerning their own children's independent mobility (see Appendix Table 4).
Possible Results and Potential Interpretations
Differences between Aboriginal parents and Anglo-Australian parents could be significant; Aboriginal parents may allow their children more independent mobility and hold fewer judgements when seeing children travelling and playing unaccompanied. Anglo- Australian parents may hold stronger judgements towards Aboriginal children; their over-protective parenting culture implies that children must not be neglected, instead always supervised by adults. This view exacerbates their own impulse for supervision; they may not want their children to mix with children that are considered unsafe and free-range. Therefore, any intent to allow their children more independent mobility is further discouraged.
It is difficult to predict the difference in parental burnout between Aboriginal and Anglo-Australian parents. Parental burnout is especially prevalent if children have special needs that require more attention and care. Intensive parenting is adding stress to parental responsibilities and increases the risk of burning out. However, it must be noted that other factors like poverty, substance abuse, or other mental conditions could cause similar symptoms and lead to burnout. Also, it is not intentional to advise irresponsible permissive parenting practices. It is about finding the right balance.
Conclusion
Knowledge about optimal parenting is a crucial advancement to protect vulnerable children in our society, but is the middle-class intensive parenting culture taking it too far? Moreover, how do stereotypes affect judgements about CIM?
Increasing CIM could be simultaneously beneficial for the child and the parent. If children were allowed more independent mobility, it would counteract obesity, promote well- being, responsibility and social skills. Some pressure could be taken off parents and thus prevent exhaustion and burnout. It could overall have a profoundly positive impact on society. We need to understand why CIM is restricted today in the Australian culture – especially if it involves prejudice between Anglo-Australians and Aboriginals.
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Appendix
Table 1. The primary six vignette types describing child gender, ages in years, activity, distance from home and duration.
Table 3. Parental Burnout
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