One-fifth of Hong Kong parents under too much strain at home, survey finds, leaving little time to ask children about their problems

Bleak poll by Hong Kong Institute of Family Education reveals mothers and fathers work long hours and pile academic pressure on offspring

Social worker appeals to companies to introduce more home-working and flexible hours

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A survey has found that parents are feeling stressed by domestic life, with children’s school work a major factor. Photo: Shutterstock.

Published: 6:23pm, 19 May 2019Updated: 9:32pm, 19 May 2019

One in five parents feel they are struggling with home life, according to a survey published by an NGO on Sunday.

Of the 509 parents of kindergarten, primary and secondary children polled by the Hong Kong Institute of Family Education, 22.4 per cent said they were under a lot of pressure on the domestic front.

The main causes of the stress were their children’s emotions (29.1 per cent) and studies (27.7 per cent), the survey conducted from April to May this year found.

A total of 11.9 per cent of all respondents said they spent two hours or more each day with their children on homework in the past three months.

The strain of long working hours is a cause of family-related stress among parents, the survey shows. Photo: Fung Chang

However, 10.2 per cent said they did not dedicate any of the day talking to their children about worries in the past three months, while 16.1 per cent said they spent only one to 15 minutes doing so each day.