Contextual and socio‑demographic moderators of gendered parental involvement in children’s education: A comparative study of two rural communities in Bihar, India

This comparative study examines how gender, socio demographics, and local circumstances shape parental involvement in two rural Bihar communities using Epstein's six-dimension framework. A stratified sample of 400 parents (two villages, 200 per village) completed face to face surveys measuring all the six-dimensions of Epstein framework. Composite scores yielded acceptable reliability. Independent samples t-tests revealed large gender gaps in Learning at Home and Community Collaboration in Town 1, and significant Father Mother differences in Decision Making and Community Collaboration in Town 2. Multiple regressions indicated that Education and Gender were consistent predictors of Communicating, Volunteering, and Learning at Home. Theoretically, the study extends Epstein's dimensions by integrating it with a contextualized, grounded family-systems approach. Empirically, it shows that community context and parental education shape the gendered enactment of specific involvement dimension, revealing dimension-specific mechanisms of role negotiation. Policies that address local norms and resource constraints can foster more equitable family–school partnerships in rural South Asia. • The study applies Epstein framework within a contextual family-system approach. • Community context moderates how gender and education shape parental involvement roles. • Parental education consistently predicts communication and volunteering across both towns. • A dimension-specific moderation model is developed and tested for family-school partnerships. • Findings of the study inform policies for equitable parental involvement in rural South Asia.