**2. Child-rearing practices related to cultural and social contexts**

In the first part of the chapter we present and discuss some of the studies carried out in our group that show that child-rearing practices are closely linked to the cultural and social context in which families are included.

Variations in cultural contexts can coexist even within the same country, such as in Brazil, with a recent history, a large territory, much social inequality, and a strong presence of immigrants. In developed countries, which have much more consolidated histories, it is sometimes easier to establish the prevailing cultural patterns and their relation to specific child-rearing practices. In contrast, in a developing country such as Brazil, this is more difficult to grasp, in part due

© 2013 Piccinini et al.; licensee InTech. This is a paper distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

to its complexity and cultural diversity. Brazil is the fifth largest country and occupied the seventh position among the world's economies in 2012 (IMF, 2012). Its population of approx‐ imately 194 million inhabitants (IBGE, 2012) has been formed by groups of people and cultures, including indigenous people who inhabited the American continent when it was discovered, by people who immigrated from Europe (Portuguese, Italians, Germans, Polish), and Asia (Japanese, Chinese), or slaves who were bought from Africa, among others groups. Over the years the blending of these people has occurred to a greater or lesser degree depending on the ethnic groups involved, and there have been important cultural exchanges. Conversely, some immigrant groups still preserve important cultural traits, especially in the south, with a strong presence of descendants of European immigrants. Added to this is a great religious diversity, from traditional religions, such as Catholic, Protestant and Jewish, those of African origin and a set of new sects and religions called Evangelical. Several of these religions have in their indoctrination clear messages about the socialization of children and how to make them obedient and respectful to God and their own parents.

among other questions, was asked how she would behave with her child in a similar situation. Half of the situations involved conventional issues (e.g. mealtime refusal, school refusal, refusal to go to sleep) while the others involved moral issues (e.g. hitting another child, stealing a toy from another child, damaging something at home), based on Kolberg's (1984) concep‐ tualization. Differences in the use of child-rearing practices were found which were related to the mother's cultural background and type of situation. In relation to conventional situations, the mothers of Italian descent mentioned more permissive strategies for younger children than did the mothers of German descent. As far as the moral situations were concerned, few

Child-Rearing Practices of Brazilian Mothers and Fathers: Predictors and Impact on Child Development

http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/57242

19

Even within a single city, variations in child-rearing practices tend to be expressed and have been associated with differences in the social class of the families. For instance, in one of our studies (Tudge, Lopes et al., 2013) we examined the social class differences in child-rearing values and the extent to which parents are influenced by their children. Twenty-five middleclass and working-class families living in a city of the south of the country participated in interviews, observations, and completed Kohn's Q-sort measure when their children were 3, 36, and 72 months of age. We found that the parental child-rearing values significantly differed by social class: middle-class parents were more likely to value self-direction and autonomy in their children,whereasworking-classparentsweremorelikelytovalue conformity.Inaddition, the strength and direction of the parental values significantly changed as their children

The studies carriedoutintheNUDIFsupportthe literatureandshowthe importanceofdifferent cultural and socialfactors, which often coexist within the same country or even within the same city and are associated with parental child-rearing practices. Obviously this is not a determin‐ istic andunilateralrelationship, with the child-reading practices also being influencedby many other factors, related, for example, to the characteristics of the parents and the child and to the specific contexts of childhood development, which will be presented in the next section.

It is important to emphasize that human values are mutually influenced by the social world and by individual characteristics (Tudge, Piccinini et al., 2013), and although it is possible to distinguish, analytically, between these factor, they are closely related within a whole that cannot be reduced to the sum of its elements (Tudge, 2008). A cultural–ecological approach to values can help to view developmental phenomena in more complex ways that stem from the intersection of multiple facets (Tudge et al., 2013). For instance, as pointed out by these authors, parents' child-rearing values are more than just the product of culture or class, they involve a dynamic interplay between aspects of the context (e.g. social class) and aspects of the individ‐

**3. Parents' and children's characteristics as predictors of child-rearing**

Seeking to investigate the attitudes and behaviors of parents regarding the socialization of their children, studies have highlighted some factors associated with parental child-rearing

differences were found between the groups.

uals, just as any contextualist theory specifies.

developed.

**practices**

Considering the extent and diversity of Brazil, it is difficult to characterize the child-rearing practices most commonly used by mothers and fathers. For example, in the southern region of the country, where our research has been developed, cities can be found with large Italian, German, or Japanese colonization. Furthermore, in addition to cultural variation within the same city, we find huge socioeconomic differences, with neighborhoods of wealthy families situated next to slums. It should be noted that in the ranking of the 2012 Global Human Development Index (HDI) Brazil occupied the 85th position (HDI = 0.73) among the 187 countries assessed (UNDP, 2013), with huge variations between Brazilian cities, ranging from an HDI of 0.92 (the city of São Caetano do Sul, SP, similar to the HDI of 0.94 in Norway, which ranks first in the global ranking) to an HDI of 0.47 (the city of Manari, EP) identical to the HDI of 0.47 in Tanzania, Africa, which ranks 152nd in the overall ranking (UNDP, 2013). This might be reflected in the socialization goals of mothers and fathers of these different cities, which also impact on child-rearing practices. For instance, in one of the studies in which we took part (Seidl-de-Moura et al., 2008) we investigated the socialization goals of 349 primiparous Brazilian mothers., from seven different cities representing each of the five geographical regions of the country. The results revealed that overall the mothers tended to present a pattern that fosters the development of children's autonomous-relational selves, based on Kağitçiba‐ şi's (2007) self development model. According to this author, autonomy and relatedness both tend to be encouraged by families that value emotional closeness, proximity and, at the same time, children's autonomy to make decisions and act by themselves. This model is prevalent in families that live in traditionally interdependent contexts that have been undergoing modernization processes, including urbanization, economic development and educational opportunities. However, intracultural variation was also revealed in mothers' socialization goals, which was related to the different cities studied and mothers' educational levels.

In a previous study (Piccinini, Maggi, & Carro, 1993) we investigated mothers' child-rearing practices, from two cities of the south of the country, with different cultural backgrounds (40 mothers were of German descent and 38 mothers were of Italian descent). The mothers had either a child of two to three years of age or a child of five to six years of age. In an interview the mother was presented with six hypothetical situations related to the child's behavior and, among other questions, was asked how she would behave with her child in a similar situation. Half of the situations involved conventional issues (e.g. mealtime refusal, school refusal, refusal to go to sleep) while the others involved moral issues (e.g. hitting another child, stealing a toy from another child, damaging something at home), based on Kolberg's (1984) concep‐ tualization. Differences in the use of child-rearing practices were found which were related to the mother's cultural background and type of situation. In relation to conventional situations, the mothers of Italian descent mentioned more permissive strategies for younger children than did the mothers of German descent. As far as the moral situations were concerned, few differences were found between the groups.

to its complexity and cultural diversity. Brazil is the fifth largest country and occupied the seventh position among the world's economies in 2012 (IMF, 2012). Its population of approx‐ imately 194 million inhabitants (IBGE, 2012) has been formed by groups of people and cultures, including indigenous people who inhabited the American continent when it was discovered, by people who immigrated from Europe (Portuguese, Italians, Germans, Polish), and Asia (Japanese, Chinese), or slaves who were bought from Africa, among others groups. Over the years the blending of these people has occurred to a greater or lesser degree depending on the ethnic groups involved, and there have been important cultural exchanges. Conversely, some immigrant groups still preserve important cultural traits, especially in the south, with a strong presence of descendants of European immigrants. Added to this is a great religious diversity, from traditional religions, such as Catholic, Protestant and Jewish, those of African origin and a set of new sects and religions called Evangelical. Several of these religions have in their indoctrination clear messages about the socialization of children and how to make them

Considering the extent and diversity of Brazil, it is difficult to characterize the child-rearing practices most commonly used by mothers and fathers. For example, in the southern region of the country, where our research has been developed, cities can be found with large Italian, German, or Japanese colonization. Furthermore, in addition to cultural variation within the same city, we find huge socioeconomic differences, with neighborhoods of wealthy families situated next to slums. It should be noted that in the ranking of the 2012 Global Human Development Index (HDI) Brazil occupied the 85th position (HDI = 0.73) among the 187 countries assessed (UNDP, 2013), with huge variations between Brazilian cities, ranging from an HDI of 0.92 (the city of São Caetano do Sul, SP, similar to the HDI of 0.94 in Norway, which ranks first in the global ranking) to an HDI of 0.47 (the city of Manari, EP) identical to the HDI of 0.47 in Tanzania, Africa, which ranks 152nd in the overall ranking (UNDP, 2013). This might be reflected in the socialization goals of mothers and fathers of these different cities, which also impact on child-rearing practices. For instance, in one of the studies in which we took part (Seidl-de-Moura et al., 2008) we investigated the socialization goals of 349 primiparous Brazilian mothers., from seven different cities representing each of the five geographical regions of the country. The results revealed that overall the mothers tended to present a pattern that fosters the development of children's autonomous-relational selves, based on Kağitçiba‐ şi's (2007) self development model. According to this author, autonomy and relatedness both tend to be encouraged by families that value emotional closeness, proximity and, at the same time, children's autonomy to make decisions and act by themselves. This model is prevalent in families that live in traditionally interdependent contexts that have been undergoing modernization processes, including urbanization, economic development and educational opportunities. However, intracultural variation was also revealed in mothers' socialization goals, which was related to the different cities studied and mothers' educational levels.

In a previous study (Piccinini, Maggi, & Carro, 1993) we investigated mothers' child-rearing practices, from two cities of the south of the country, with different cultural backgrounds (40 mothers were of German descent and 38 mothers were of Italian descent). The mothers had either a child of two to three years of age or a child of five to six years of age. In an interview the mother was presented with six hypothetical situations related to the child's behavior and,

obedient and respectful to God and their own parents.

18 Parenting in South American and African Contexts

Even within a single city, variations in child-rearing practices tend to be expressed and have been associated with differences in the social class of the families. For instance, in one of our studies (Tudge, Lopes et al., 2013) we examined the social class differences in child-rearing values and the extent to which parents are influenced by their children. Twenty-five middleclass and working-class families living in a city of the south of the country participated in interviews, observations, and completed Kohn's Q-sort measure when their children were 3, 36, and 72 months of age. We found that the parental child-rearing values significantly differed by social class: middle-class parents were more likely to value self-direction and autonomy in their children,whereasworking-classparentsweremorelikelytovalue conformity.Inaddition, the strength and direction of the parental values significantly changed as their children developed.

The studies carriedoutintheNUDIFsupportthe literatureandshowthe importanceofdifferent cultural and socialfactors, which often coexist within the same country or even within the same city and are associated with parental child-rearing practices. Obviously this is not a determin‐ istic andunilateralrelationship, with the child-reading practices also being influencedby many other factors, related, for example, to the characteristics of the parents and the child and to the specific contexts of childhood development, which will be presented in the next section.

It is important to emphasize that human values are mutually influenced by the social world and by individual characteristics (Tudge, Piccinini et al., 2013), and although it is possible to distinguish, analytically, between these factor, they are closely related within a whole that cannot be reduced to the sum of its elements (Tudge, 2008). A cultural–ecological approach to values can help to view developmental phenomena in more complex ways that stem from the intersection of multiple facets (Tudge et al., 2013). For instance, as pointed out by these authors, parents' child-rearing values are more than just the product of culture or class, they involve a dynamic interplay between aspects of the context (e.g. social class) and aspects of the individ‐ uals, just as any contextualist theory specifies.
