Personality Traits and Parental Burnout Among Fathers: A Moderated Mediation Model

Abstract

Focusing on a sample of fathers, this study examined the effects of two personality traits, agreeableness and neuroticism, on parental burnout, as well as the mediating role of parenting sense of competence and moderating effects of parental psychological flexibility. Data were collected from 263 fathers of middle-school children in central China, with questionnaires including the agreeableness and neuroticism subscales from the Big Five personality trait scale, Parenting Sense of Competence Scale, Parenting Psychological Flexibility scale, and Parental Burnout Assessment. To analyze the hypothesized moderated mediation model, bootstrapping analysis and structural equation modeling were performed. Results showed that agreeableness was negatively correlated with parental burnout, while neuroticism was positively correlated with parental burnout; both these relationships were partially mediated by parenting sense of competency. Further, psychological flexibility moderated the relationship between parenting sense of competence and parental burnout. When parenting psychological flexibility was low, parenting sense of competence was significantly related to parental burnout, while parenting psychological flexibility was high, parenting sense of competence was not related to parental burnout significantly. These preliminary findings provide theoretical guidance and an empirical basis for intervention strategies to prevent burnout among fathers.