Parenting in context
How urban neighborhoods shape experiences parenting young children: A qualitative exploration
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 11054102 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Daneele Thorpe (0000-0002-3603-681X, Department of Psychology Stony Brook University Stony Brook New York USA, corresponding author), Jill Smokoski (Department of Psychology Stony Brook University Stony Brook New York USA), Loris Caxaj (Department of Psychology Stony Brook University Stony Brook New York USA), Krishna Shah (0000-0002-7802-6361, Department of Psychology Stony Brook University Stony Brook New York USA), KM SHAH (Stony Brook University), Keren Cruz (Department of Psychology Stony Brook University Stony Brook New York USA), Kristin Bernard (0000-0003-2421-8453, Department of Psychology Stony Brook University Stony Brook New York USA) |
| Year | 2026 |
| Volume | 77 |
| Issue | 3-4 |
| Pages | 602-617 |
| Publication date | 2026-02-18 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | American Journal of Community Psychology (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0091-0562 • E-ISSN: 1573-2770 |
| Publisher | Wiley (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1002/ajcp.70054 |
| PMID | 41705395 |
| OpenAlex | W7130420586 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 62 |
Research suggests that neighborhood conditions may shape parenting practices. However, few qualitative studies have examined these patterns in parents of young children. Using focus group methodology with 30 urban parents, this qualitative study examined how the neighborhood environment may relate to experiences of parenting young children (ages 3–5 years, M = 4.52, SD = 1.07; 63% female). The sample was predominantly composed of female and biological parents, with about 50% identifying as Hispanic/Latino, most identifying as Black/African American (63%), and 40% identifying as having an immigrant background. Analyses revealed six key themes across 314 nodes related to the influence of neighborhood conditions on parenting: (a) distal neighborhood influences, (b) parents' distress about the neighborhood, (c) parents shaping development, (d) restriction and withdrawal, (e) navigating neighborhood resources, and (f) the role of the social environment. These themes are consistent with extensions of the Family Stress Model, which suggest that parents' awareness of community stressors contributes to psychological distress, shaping how they engage with their children and navigate their neighborhoods. Notably, across themes, parents frequently reflected on how these challenges directly impact their young children's development and well‐being. Findings also suggested that patterns of adaptive parenting may vary based on immigrant origin, neighborhood context, and parent and child characteristics (e.g., age, race, and biological sex). The results suggested that, despite neighborhood challenges, parents actively employ strategies to protect and nurture their children, demonstrating resilience in their parenting practices
Distress · Focus group · Health psychology · Immigration · Nature versus nurture · Parenting styles · Psychological resilience · Qualitative research · Stressor · Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development · Parental Involvement in Education · Urban, Neighborhood, and Segregation Studies
Exercise of Human Agency Through Collective Efficacy
The protective effect of neighborhood social cohesion in child abuse and neglect
Stress and child development
Social Support and Parenting in Poor, Dangerous Neighborhoods
Attachment and development
Controllability of Stressful Events and Satisfaction With Spouse Support Behaviors
Effects of Authoritative Parental Control on Child Behavior
Disparity in Depression Treatment Among Racial and Ethnic Minority Populations in the United States
The Child Opportunity Index
An Integrative Model for the Study of Developmental Competencies in Minority Children
Consolidated criteria for reporting qualitative research (Coreq)
Parent training programs for immigrant families in Europe
Parenting in Times of War
We Are Raising Our Children in Fear”
The Essentials of Social Cohesion
Exposure to community violence and parenting behaviors
Parents' ethnic-racial socialization practices
The coherence of individual development
Latino Adolescents' Community Violence Exposure
Cultivating social relationships and disrupting social isolation in low‐income, high‐disparity neighbourhoods in Ohio, USA
Growing up Poor
Pathways from neighborhood to neglect
Neighborhood Characteristics, Maternal Parenting, and Health and Development of Children from Socioeconomically Disadvantaged Families
How Does the Neighborhood “Come through the Door?” Concentrated Disadvantage, Residential Instability, and the Home Environment for Preschoolers
Exposure to Violence and Socioemotional Adjustment in Low‐Income Youth
Preparing the Way
Single mothers' perceptions of neighborhood social cohesion, parenting stress, adverse childhood experiences in early childhood and Black children's behavior problems in middle childhood and adolescence
Social capital, safety concerns, parenting, and early adolescents' antisocial behavior
Community violence and posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms in urban youth
The role of parenting stress in mediating the relationship between neighborhood social cohesion and depression and anxiety among mothers of young children in fragile families
Organized Activity Involvement among Urban Youth
The Influence of Parent Social Networks on Parent Perceptions and Motivation for Involvement
One talk at a time
Current patterns of parental authority
Relations between neighborhood factors, parenting behaviors, peer deviance, and delinquency among serious juvenile offenders
Community Violence and Urban Families
Contexts of child rearing
EMBR ace
Networks, Neighborhoods, and Communities
A Mediational Model for the Impact of Exposure to Community Violence on Early Child Behavior Problems
African American Family and Parenting Strategies in Impoverished Neighborhoods
Community Lost? Changes and Stratification in Perceived Neighborhood Social Cohesion among Families with Children
Parenting in Violent Neighborhoods
The Community Question
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |