I am not the parent I should be: Cross-sectional and prospective associations between parental self-discrepancies and parental burnout

Abstract

Because research has shown systematic associations between self-discrepancies and several psychological disorders, self-discrepancy is considered as a transdiagnostic factor in psychopathology. The current research contributes to the literature by testing both cross-sectionally and longitudinally the role of self-discrepancies in parental burnout, an exhaustion disorder in the parenting domain where standards are high and prescriptions numerous. In three studies (including a prospective one; N1 = 109, N2 = 1689, N3 Third measurement time = 553 parents), we showed that self-discrepancies are strongly associated with parental burnout, and Study 3 showed that they even predict rank-order increases in such burnout. These results have implications for research on self-discrepancies, parental burnout and psychopathology more broadly.