Abstract
Parenting stress refers to the psychological pressure experienced by parents when the demands of parenting are perceived to exceed available resources. According to Abidin, parenting stress consists of three main aspects: parent distress, which relates to parents’ internal emotional pressure; difficult child, which arises from parents’ perceptions of challenging child behavior; and parent–child dysfunctional interaction, which reflects parents’ dissatisfaction with the quality of interactions with their children. This qualitative study aimed to explore mothers’ experiences of parenting stress based on these three aspects through in-depth interviews with three mothers living in Kampung Tanjung Koto Mambang, Nagari Sungai Durian. The findings indicate that parent distress was the most dominant aspect, characterized by emotional exhaustion, anxiety, and the burden of multiple roles, while the difficult child aspect emerged through mothers’ perceptions of children’s behavior as difficult to manage, particularly among boys, and parent–child dysfunctional interaction was reflected in mother–child interactions that were perceived as not fully emotionally satisfying, despite being generally described as adequate. These findings suggest that parenting stress among mothers is shaped by daily life demands and limited support within a rural context. Overall, this study emphasizes that parenting stress needs to be understood comprehensively by considering maternal conditions, child characteristics, the quality of mother–child relationships, and the surrounding social context. Family and community support play an important role in reducing parenting stress and improving the quality of parenting.
Stres pengasuhan merupakan tekanan psikologis yang dialami orang tua ketika tuntutan pengasuhan dirasakan melebihi sumber daya yang dimiliki. Menurut Abidin, stres pengasuhan mencakup tiga aspek, yaitu parent distress yang berkaitan dengan tekanan internal orang tua, difficult child yang muncul dari persepsi orang tua terhadap perilaku anak yang dianggap sulit, serta parent–child dysfunctional interaction yang berkaitan dengan ketidakpuasan orang tua terhadap kualitas interaksi dengan anak. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk menggambarkan pengalaman stres pengasuhan pada ibu berdasarkan ketiga aspek tersebut menggunakan pendekatan kualitatif melalui wawancara mendalam terhadap tiga orang ibu di Kampung Tanjung Koto Mambang, Nagari Sungai Durian. Hasil penelitian ini menunjukkan bahwa parent distress menjadi aspek yang paling dominan, ditandai dengan kelelahan emosional, kecemasan, dan tekanan peran ganda, sementara aspek difficult child muncul melalui persepsi ibu terhadap perilaku anak yang dianggap sulit diatur, khususnya pada anak laki-laki, dan aspek parent–child dysfunctional interaction terlihat dari interaksi ibu dan anak yang dirasakan belum sepenuhnya memberikan kepuasan emosional bagi ibu meskipun hubungan secara umum dinilai cukup baik. Temuan ini menunjukkan bahwa stres pengasuhan pada ibu dipengaruhi oleh dinamika kehidupan sehari-hari dan keterbatasan dukungan dalam konteks masyarakat pedesaan. Secara keseluruhan, penelitian ini menegaskan bahwa stres pengasuhan pada ibu perlu dipahami secara komprehensif dengan mempertimbangkan kondisi ibu, karakteristik anak, kualitas hubungan ibu dan anak, serta konteks sosial di sekitarnya. Dukungan keluarga dan komunitas menjadi faktor penting dalam membantu mengurangi stres pengasuhan dan meningkatkan kualitas pengasuhan anak.
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