Frequent witnessing to interparental conflict and low parental
availability for leisure-time is associated with dysfunctional voiding
in primary school children
Abstract
Aim: Aspects of parenting is an under-investigated topic among children
with voiding complaints. We aimed to investigate the association between
voiding complaints among children and two specific parenting related
behaviors: 1) parental availability during the child’s leisure time and
2) frequency of witnessing interparental conflict. Material and Method:
Children aged between 6 and 11 years with their parents were the
participants. Two survey forms and informed consent form were sent to
potential participants via children’s teacher. Voiding dysfunction
complaints were evaluated with the Dysfunctional Voiding and
Incontinence Symptom Scale (DVISS). Results: Data analyses were
performed with 1101 eligible participants. Mean duration of parental
availability during the child’s leisure time was below 2 hours per day.
Nearly one out of every four children witnessed interparental conflict
at least once a month. Age, educational level of the mother, parental
availability for the child’s leisure time, and frequency of witnessing
parental conflicts were found to be significantly associated with DVISS
ratings. Adjusting age, socioeconomic level, and educational level of
the parents and later adjusting parental availability during the child’s
leisure time did not change the association of frequency of witnessing
interparental conflict with DVISS rates. Increase in the age,
educational level of the mother, and parental availability during the
child’s leisure time were correlated with better scores on DVISS while
increase in the frequency of witnessing interparental conflict strongly
correlated with worse scores. Conclusion: Exposing children to
interparental conflicts and shorter togetherness with their leisure time
is associated with voiding complaints.