Maternal Attribution, Perceptions of Parenting, and Behavior Management Strategies as Predictors of Mother–Teacher Discrepancies in Rating Behavior Problems of Korean Preschoolers

The present study aimed to investigate mother–teacher discrepancies in reports of preschoolers’ behavior problems and to examine whether maternal attribution to behavior problems, perception of parenting, and behavior management strategies predicted the discrepancies. The mothers and teachers of 384 preschoolers aged 3–6 years from 16 preschools of Seoul, South Korea, completed the Child Behavior Checklist and the Caregiver–Teacher Report Form. Based on their ratings, they were classified into three groups: (a) mother–teacher Agreement Group, (b) Disagreement Group with Mother only reporting at Risk (Disagreement Group-MR), and (c) Disagreement Group with Mother only reporting No Risk (Disagreement Group-MNR). The results showed marginal similarities between mothers’ and teachers’ reports of behavior problems, indicating both low correlations and differences in percentages of at-risk children. Multinomial logistic regressions revealed that maternal attribution and maternal perception of parenting difficulties predicted group membership regarding mother–teacher discrepancies. For both internalizing and externalizing problems, mothers who attributed environmental factors as primary causes of children’s behavior problems were more likely to be in the Agreement Group than the Disagreement Group-MNR. With regard to externalizing problems, the more the mothers perceived parenting difficulties, the more likely they were to belong to either of the Disagreement Groups. The outcomes suggest the importance of considering that mothers’ reports of children’s behavior and mother–teacher discrepancies partly mirror mothers’ beliefs and perceptions regarding children’s behavior and parenting. Professionals need to be aware that information from mother–teacher discrepancies can be of help in understanding mothers as well as children in practice.