This article discusses a study that explored Pacific women's parenting practices. It examines the women's perceptions of their own up-bringing in terms of the abusive and nurturing behaviours they experienced from male and female parents. The data was collected as part of the "Pacific Islands Families: First Two Years of Life Study", a longitudinal study following a cohort of 1,398 infants born at Middlemore Hospital, South Auckland, during 2000. The study participants were approximately 1,200 mothers who were interviewed in relation to the health and development of child and family functioning. The results indicate the co-existence of abusive and supportive behaviours in the total sample. Mothers were perceived to be both more abusive and supportive than fathers. Physical abuse was recalled more strongly than emotional abuse. Lower abuse rates and higher rates of supportiveness were reported by Tongan mothers (and most other ethnic groups) than Samoan mothers. The mothers born in New Zealand reported significantly more maternal and paternal abuse than those born in the Islands. In terms of maternal and paternal supportiveness, no significant difference was found. The article concludes that the general picture of Pacific child raising patterns that emerged from the study provide a base for further research.

fj

The Journal of Pacific Studies 28(2) November 2005 : 291-309