A Comparative Study on Behavioral Problems of Preschool Children among Working and Non-Working Mothers

Introduction: Children are the nation’s most important assets. Preschool period is a fantastic time for a child to learn things. At the same time, they become easily frustrated. A large number of children suffer from behavioral problems at one time or the other during their development. Mothers should try to devote some time for their children to make them feel loved and special. Mothers should be able to detect any behavioral changes at the earliest. Objectives: The objectives of the study were to assess the behavioral problems of preschool children among working mothers, assess the behavioral problems of preschool children among non-working mothers, compare the behavioral problems of preschool children between working and non working mothers and find out the association between behavioral problems of preschool children with selected demographic variables. Design: Non-experimental comparative survey design. Setting: Smart Kids Play School, Bharati English Medium School and Holy Angels Higher Primary School, Mangalore Sample: 30 working and 30 non-working mothers of pre-school children Interventions: Demographic Proforma and Behavioral Problems Assessment Rating Scale were administered to both working and non-working mothers. Results: Mild level of behavioral problems were reported by 40% of working mothers and 83.3% of nonworking mothers, whereas 16.7% of non-working mothers and 60% of working mothers reported moderate level among their children. There was significant difference in the level of behavioral problems of preschool children among working and non-working mothers.There was significant association between behavioral problems of preschool children and gender of the child. There was also significant association between behavioral problems of preschool children among working mothers and age of the child. Conclusion: Preschool children of working mothers have more behavioral problems than those of nonworking mothers. Nurses can play a major role in diminishing the behavioral problems by providing guidance and counseling for the children and their mothers.