The Role of Parental Acceptance⁻Rejection in Emotional Instability During Adolescence

Rejunctive Moves Toward Systemic Healing: A Contextual Family Therapy Approach to Father's Absence

The phenomena of father's absence and the disruption of a family unit due to social justice issues like incarceration and mental health/substance misuse challenges are widely documented, and their effects on the whole family are well established in the literature. This paper specifically examines how systemic inequities like racism contribute to destructive entitlements that can occur transgenerationally within families affected by father's absence. The consideration of racial trauma is crucial, as father's absence and family disruption are not limited to any one racial or ethnic group, but the effects are often exacerbated for families of color due to the intersecting impacts of systemic racism. This paper highlights contextual family therapy (CFT) concepts, such as multidirected partiality, destructive entitlements, and exoneration, as they apply to these families within the context of racial trauma. Family therapists using a CFT approach with families impacted by incarceration, mental health, and/or substance misuse should address racial trauma as a key component influencing each family member as well as the family dynamics. A clinical case example is used to demonstrate the application of CFT in supporting rejunctive moves toward healing parent- and adult-child relationships within these resilient families.

Exploring the interplay of parenting styles, basic empathy, domestic violence, and bystander behavior in adolescent school bullying: a moderated mediation analysis

Introduction

This study investigates how parental styles, basic empathy, and family violence influence adolescents' bystander behaviors in school bullying.

Methods

A survey was conducted with 1,067 students from three middle schools in southern China. Multifactor logistic regression and a moderated mediation model were employed to analyze the relationships between positive and negative parental styles, basic empathy, and bystander behaviors.

Results

The study found significant correlations and predictive relationships: Positive parental styles were strongly associated with increased basic empathy (r = 0.29, p < 0.01) and behaviors that protect victims (r = 0.29, p < 0.01). In contrast, negative parental styles correlated positively with behaviors that support bullying (r = 0.12, p < 0.01) and instances of family violence (r = 0.62, p < 0.01). Basic empathy negatively predicted behaviors that promote bullying (β = -0.098, p < 0.01) and positively predicted protective behaviors toward victims (β = 0.249, p < 0.001). Furthermore, family violence weakened the positive effects of positive parental styles on both empathy (β = -0.075, p < 0.001) and protective behaviors (β = -0.025, p < 0.01).

Conclusion

The findings indicate that positive parental styles indirectly promote adolescents' victim protector behaviors by enhancing their basic empathy, underscoring the importance of emotional cultivation. Meanwhile, family violence weakens the positive impact of these parental styles on basic empathy and protective behaviors, harming adolescents' emotional security and behavioral norms.

Psychosocial Factors and Psychological Adjustment Among Adolescents and Young Adults: A Comparative Analysis of Occasional Drug Craving and Non-Craving

OBJECTIVE

The rate of drug craving not only in Pakistan is escalating rapidly, but also from a wide range of cultures and geographically have been impacted by the drug problem. Recently, drug cravings among young Pakistani school and college students have significantly increased, particularly illegal substances like hashish, heroin, and ecstasy.

METHODS

We recruited 338 students and gathered demographic and drug-craving data through a survey. To assess the study variables, we used the parental acceptance-rejection short version, peer pressure questionnaire, and adult personality assessment scale.

RESULTS

The prevalence rate of occasional drug craving was 44.1% (tobacco, 39.9%; heroin, 1.8%; ice, 0.6%; and others), and 55.9% have never tried them. Initially, drug craving at the first onset at the age of 14 in friend gatherings (15.7%) in stressful situations (11.2%), high-income families, particularly in joint family systems with paternal rejection, peer enforcement, and maladjustment had a higher risk than affectionate parents and conventional peers. Stepwise binary logistic regression analysis disclosed that age, socioeconomic status, father affection, hostility, rejection, negligence, peer influences, and psychosocial adjustment, mother hostility were independently associated with occasional drug cravings.

CONCLUSION

Findings suggested the high prevalence of occasional drug cravings in Pakistani students in the capital territory. Furthermore, the demographic and other social and clinical aspects could be linked. This study carried out theoretical significance in understanding the predictors of occasional drug craving and psychological adjustment, highlighting the peer and parent's roles and the educational institutions.

A cognitive-computational account of mood swings in adolescence

Teenagers have a reputation for being fickle, in both their choices and their moods. This variability may help adolescents as they begin to independently navigate novel environments. Recently, however, adolescent moodiness has also been linked to psychopathology. Here, we consider adolescents' mood swings from a novel computational perspective, grounded in reinforcement learning (RL). This model proposes that mood is determined by surprises about outcomes in the environment, and how much we learn from these surprises. It additionally suggests that mood biases learning and choice in a bidirectional manner. Integrating independent lines of research, we sketch a cognitive-computational account of how adolescents' mood, learning, and choice dynamics influence each other, with implications for normative and psychopathological development.

The Impact of Children's and Parents' Perceptions of Parenting Styles on Attention, Hyperactivity, Anxiety, and Emotional Regulation

Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptomatology can be studied by examining the associated neurobiological factors or by looking at the environmental factors involved, such as parenting styles. Negative parenting styles have been associated with ADHD symptoms in childhood and adolescence. The present study aimed to analyze the predictive power of two parenting style dimensions (warmth-communication and criticism-rejection) and three factors about rule-setting and compliance (inductive, strict, and indulgent styles) in the explanation of ADHD symptoms (attention and hyperactivity) and associated emotional factors (anxiety and emotional regulation) considering parents' and children's perspectives. The results indicate that from the parents' perspective, the criticism-rejection variable was the most important in explaining attention difficulties, anxiety and emotional regulation. From the children's perspective, the strict parenting style was the most important variable in explaining hyperactivity and emotional regulation. In addition, for children, warmth-communication was significant in predicting fewer emotional regulation difficulties. Our results highlight the importance of considering family dynamics when assessing ADHD in order to implement comprehensive interventions that consider parental training in positive parenting styles.

Parenting Styles and Adolescents' Problem Behaviors: The Mediating Effect of Adolescents' Self-Control

The study examined the mediating role of adolescents' self-control on the relationship between parenting styles and problem behaviors. A parenting style questionnaire, adolescents' self-control questionnaire, and the Youth Self-Report were administered to 611 adolescents (335 boys, and 276 girls, Mage = 13.17, SD = 0.46) to assess their parenting styles, self-control, and problem behaviors. The results indicated that paternal rejection was positively associated with externalizing problems and maternal rejection was positively associated with internalizing problems. Moreover, adolescents' self-control played a mediating role in the relationship between paternal rejection and externalizing problems and between paternal rejection and internalizing problems. The findings showed that paternal and maternal rearing styles have different influences on adolescents' internalizing and externalizing problems, respectively, and adolescents' self-control played a mediating role in these different relationships. This study has great significance for revealing the mechanism of parenting styles on adolescents' problem behaviors.

Associations between paternal versus maternal parenting behaviors and child and adolescent internalizing problems: A systematic review and meta-analysis

There is a large evidence base supporting an important role of parenting behavior in influencing youth mental health; however, this literature often fails to capture the potentially unique and interactive role of mothers and fathers. This systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to investigate the role of maternal and paternal parenting behaviors in relation to child and adolescent internalizing problems. Following PRISMA (2020) guidelines, 88 studies were identified. Of these, 47 studies and upward of 65 parent-behavior and child-outcome combinations were examined. Findings indicated a unique role of maternal overprotection in the prediction of child anxiety symptoms. For other parenting behaviors, largely similar associations were found for maternal and paternal parenting behaviors with child and adolescent anxiety, depressive symptoms and broader internalizing problems. There was preliminary support for the interaction of maternal and paternal parenting being important in predicting youth symptoms. Although findings did not strongly substantiate differences in the effects of maternal and paternal parenting practices, with only one significant difference identified, further research would benefit from stronger representation of fathers, to enable a more rigorous and comprehensive understanding of each parent's role, and their interactive influence on internalizing outcomes of their children.

Non-Disclosure and Suicidal Ideation in Adolescent Victims of Bullying: An Analysis from the Family and School Context

In recent years, suicide rates among bullying victims have raised much concern among educators and health professionals. Suicide is the fourth leading cause of preventable death among adolescents, data that warn about the need to monitor the signs before victims' suicidal behavior to prevent this fatal outcome. In the present study, the role of victims' silence about their victimization situation was analysed, as well as the particular impact of family and school environments. More specifically, we examined the mediating role of the victim's non-disclosure between the parental styles (observing the father's and mother's roles separately) and the school climate, concerning suicidal ideation in victims. The sample consisted of 2,977 adolescents (48.5% boys), aged 11-17 years (M = 14.1, SD = 1.42), of whom 635 (21.3%) reported having been victims of bullying in the past year. The results showed that parental styles of rejection and indifference were positively related to victims' non-disclosure of bullying and suicidal ideation. Conversely, a positive school climate showed a negative relationship with victims' disclosure of the bullying situation and suicidal ideation. The findings also indicated that non-disclosure mediates the relationship between the mother's parental style and suicidal ideation. These findings expand knowledge about the role of bullying victims' social context and the variable disclosure with regards to suicidal ideation in adolescents victimized by peers at school.

Supportive parent-adolescent relationships as a foundation for adolescent emotion regulation and adjustment

Introduction

The purpose of this investigation was to examine the influence of supportive parent-adolescent relationships on adolescent adjustment (i.e., prosocial behavior, aggression, depressive symptoms) both directly and indirectly (via adolescent emotion regulation). Scholars have posited that adolescent emotion regulation (ER) may serve as an underlying mechanism in the link between parenting and adolescent adjustment. Supportive parent-adolescent relationships (i.e., openness, acceptance, emotional responsiveness) may be a key emotion socialization mechanism influencing adolescent ER.

Methods

The sample included 206 adolescents (Age Range= 10-18years; 51% female; 70.4% ethnic minorities) and one primary caregiver (83.3% biological mothers, 38.7% single parents). Structural equation modeling (SEM) was implemented to investigate the direct and indirect (via adolescent ER) effects of supportive parent-adolescent relationships on adolescent adjustment. We also explored whether these indirect and direct effects varied by adolescent sex and age.

Results

Results suggested direct and indirect (via adolescent ER) links between supportive parent-adolescent relationships and adolescent prosocial behavior, aggressive behavior, and depressive symptoms. Moreover, evidence indicated that many of these pathways were significant for boys but not girls. No evidence of youth age as a moderator was found.

Discussion

These findings highlight the important role supportive parent-adolescent relationships play in adolescent emotional and behavioral adjustment. Parenting programs could focus on facilitating a mutually responsive parent-adolescent relationship with a specific focus on the dynamic nature of emotion socialization during adolescence.

Parenting Practices and Adolescents' Mental Health: The Mediating Role of Perceived Maternal and Paternal Acceptance-Rejection and Adolescents' Self-Efficacy

Parenting practices are essential in promoting children's mental health, especially in effective and ineffective parenting. The use of ineffective parenting practices is no longer encouraged in the west; however, it remains a common practice among Asian households. Ineffective parenting consists of inconsistent discipline, corporal punishment, and poor monitoring which may result in mental health consequences. Thus, this study assessed the mediating effects of adolescents' self-efficacy and parental acceptance-rejection on the relationship between ineffective parenting practices and adolescents' mental health. The current study involved a total of 761 school-going Malaysian adolescents aged 13-18 (38.5% males; Mage = 15.65; SDage = 1.43). This study utilized a cross-sectional design where it measured adolescents' mental health, ineffective parenting practices, parental acceptance-rejection, and adolescents' self-efficacy. Both paternal and maternal parenting practices and acceptance-rejection were measured independently. Adolescents' self-efficacy and perceived paternal and maternal acceptance-rejection were found to be significant mediators for ineffective parenting practices and adolescents' mental health. Our findings suggest that ineffective parenting practices will result in perceived parental rejection and lower self-efficacy which in turn resulted in poorer mental health among adolescents. It means parents should be mindful of their parenting approaches as they have a direct and indirect impact on the mental health of their offspring.

The Associations between Sibling Victimization, Sibling Bullying, Parental Acceptance-Rejection, and School Bullying

Bullying has been identified as the most common form of aggression experienced by school-age youth. However, it is still unclear about the family's influence on school bullying. Therefore, the current study aimed to explore the associations between sibling bullying and school bullying, sibling victimization and school victimization, and parental acceptance-rejection and school bullying victimization. The study was cross-sectional and conducted on a sample of students aged between 11 and 20 years recruited from middle schools in Algeria. The study used a survey adopted from the scale of Sibling Bullying, Student Survey of Bullying Behavior-Revised 2, and the Survey of parental acceptance-rejection in collecting the data. The model's results assessing the association between sibling bullying and school bullying demonstrated that the effect of sibling physical and sibling verbal victims on school victimization was statistically significant. Despite the non-significant effect of sibling emotional victims on school victimization, the effect of sibling physical and sibling verbal bullying on school bullying was statistically significant. However, the effect of sibling emotional bullying on school bullying was not statistically significant. The direct effect of parental acceptance on school victimization was not statistically significant, whereas the effect of parental rejection on school victimization was statistically significant. The direct effect of parental acceptance on school bullying was not statistically significant, while the effect of parental rejection on school bullying was statistically significant. Based on the results, this study provides insights into the understanding of how the family and siblings contribute to school bullying. In particular, sibling victimization, sibling bullying, and parental acceptance-rejection are predictive factors of school bullying among adolescents. Future research should take into account factors based on family to explore the risks of school bullying.

Is Violence, Violence no Matter Where it Strikes? Adjudicated Boys, Thwarted Belongingness, Perceived Burdensomeness, and Acquired Capability for Suicide

This study explores treating violence against others as a precursor to self-directed violence. It tests the utility of including violence against others in the measure of acquired capability to test assumptions from the interpersonal theory of violence. Four theoretical hypotheses are assessed that are consistent with the theory: (1) thwarted belongingness (parental abandonment and rejection) and perceived burdensomeness (exposure to parental interpersonal violence and child abuse) independently increase the likelihood of suicidal ideation; (2) the interaction of thwarted belongingness and perceived burdensomeness increases the likelihood of suicidal ideation controlling for other pertinent variables; (3) the three-way interaction of thwarted belongingness, perceived burdensomeness, and acquired capability (violence against others and prior suicidal attempts) increases the likelihood of suicidal attempts controlling for other pertinent variables; and (4) self-harm responds to the theoretical variables and similarly, to attempts. Subjects are court-adjudicated males (ages 13-18) who were residents for up to 1 year at the Ocean Tides School and rehabilitation center from 1975-2019. The data span 44 years and include 2195 youth. Depression, drug/alcohol use, race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and interaction terms between SES and race and SES and ethnicity are also examined. Backward conditional logistic regression analyses find mixed support for the hypotheses, but strong support for including violence against others in the concept of acquired capability. Support is also found for conceptualizing child abuse and exposure to parental interpersonal violence as perceived burdensomeness in tests of this theory as well as measures of depression. Major implications for programming in the treatment and rehabilitation of delinquent boys include conceptualizing and approaching violence against others as a precursor to suicidal attempts and other self-directed harm.

Long-Term Effects of Acceptance and Rejection by Parents and Peers on Educational Attainment: A Study from Pre-Adolescence to Early Adulthood

Acceptance and rejection by parents and peers play an important role in pre-adolescents' educational outcomes. Prior research focused on either parents or peers, did not encompass effects into adulthood, or considered either acceptance or rejection. This study investigated the relation between parental and peer acceptance and rejection, and their interplay, in pre-adolescence and educational attainment in early adulthood. A sample of 2229 pre-adolescents (M_age T1 = 11.11, SD = 0.56; 50.7% girls) was followed to early adulthood (M_age T5 = 22.29, SD = 0.65). Ordinal logistic regression showed that pre-adolescents' perceived parental acceptance was positively related to educational attainment in early adulthood, whereas peer rejection was negatively related, even when WISC score and socioeconomic status were considered. No interaction effects were found, revealing no "dual-hit effect" of being rejected by parents and peers, no "dual-miss effect" of being accepted by parents and peers, and no effects of acceptance in one context (i.e., parents or peers) buffering the negative effect of rejection in the other context. The findings underscore unique and long-term links of parental acceptance and peer rejection with early adults' educational attainment, underlining the importance of not only peers but also parents in adolescence. These insights can be used in promoting long-term educational outcomes through relationships with parents and peers.

Parental Attitudes and the Attitude to Energy Saving among Young People with ASD

The aim of the study was to determine the association between parental attitudes and saving energy in the perception of young people with autism spectrum (13–17 years old). The character of studies was pilot. The diagnostic survey method was used, along with The Scale of Parental Attitudes by M. Plopa and an authored survey questionnaire. Deliberate random sampling was applied. Statistical analysis showed that an attitude towards autonomy manifested by mothers, as well as an attitude of acceptance in mothers and fathers, turned out to be significant in adolescents with ASD showing a positive attitude towards energy saving, and these correlations were positive, strong and statistically significant. An overly protective attitude of mothers turned out to be significant in shaping a negative attitude towards energy saving among adolescents with ASD with a significant, positive moderate correlation. Regression analysis showed that the perception of the father’s parental attitude as accepting was a statistically significant predictor of a positive attitude towards energy saving, and that the perception of the mother’s parental attitude as demanding and overly protective was a statistically significant predictor of a negative attitude to energy saving. The achieved results acquire an additional aspect, i.e., a financial dimension in the household budget.

Gender and Socioeconomic Status as Factors of Individual Differences in Pre-University Students' Decision-Making for Careers, with a Focus on Family Influence and Psychosocial Factors

The present study analyses the influence of family, specifically parents, on the career decisions of their children, and how gender and socioeconomic status influence this choice. Research was carried out using data obtained from a questionnaire administered to a representative sample of students who took the university entrance examination (PEvAU, its Spanish acronym) in Spanish North Africa. A quantitative research design was adopted in which multivariate analysis (MANOVA) was applied anda decision tree, which was also used for graphical and analytical analysis. The main results indicated a significant influence of parents on their children’s choices, this being the best predictor regarding the decision to take the said examination. It was also verified that their choice of Spanish Baccalaureate programme was significantly associated with their selected career path, and gender and socioeconomic status had a significant impact on that decision. These results lead to the need for further research on guidance from secondary education onwards. It would be interesting to analyse factors neglected thus far, such as those related to the cultural environment of students.

Prácticas parentales: un estudio comparado en adolescentes portugueses y españoles

El objetivo del presente trabajo es estudiar las diferencias en la percepción de los adolescentes sobre el afecto y la crítica que manifiestan los padres hacia sus hijos, y la forma en que establecen y exigen el cumplimiento de las normas, en función de la nacionalidad (portuguesa y española) y el género de los adolescentes. También analizamos la influencia del estilo parental sobre el afecto y la comunicación que perciben de sus padres. Participaron 1260 adolescentes (674 portugueses y 531 españoles) de entre 12 y 16 años (M = 13.98, DT = 1.3). Los datos se obtuvieron a través de autoinformes que evalúan la percepción del Afecto-Comunicación, la Crítica-Rechazo (EA-H) y las formas (Inductiva, Rígida e Indulgente) que tienen los padres de establecer y exigir el cumplimiento de las normas (ENE-H). Utilizando un diseño transversal, y mediante análisis multivariados, de medidas repetidas y de regresión, se confirma la existencia de diferencias interculturales e intraculturales en la percepción del Afecto-comunicación, critica-rechazo y el estilo parental, y que la forma Inductiva es un fuerte predictor del afecto y cariño de los progenitores españoles y portugueses.

Parental Socialization Styles: The Contribution of Paternal and Maternal Affect/Communication and Strictness to Family Socialization Style

The aim of this study is two-fold: (a) to determine the general degree of family affect/communication and strictness by examining the combination of the two classical dimensions of mother parenting style: affect/communication and strictness, and (b) to analyze the impact of both parents' affect and strictness on the family style, thereby exploring the specific contribution made by each parent's style and dimension. Participants were 1190 Spanish students, 47.1% boys and 52.3% girls (M = 14.68; SD = 1.76). The Affect Scale (EA-H) and the Rules and Demandingness Scale (ENE-H) (both by Fuentes, Motrico, and Bersabé, 1999) were used. Structural equation models (SEMs) were extracted using the EQS program. The results reveal that it is not the father's and the mother's parenting style combined, but rather the combination of maternal and paternal affect/communication, and maternal and paternal strictness which generates one perception of family affect and another of family strictness. The results also indicated that the weight of both dimensions varies in accordance with the parent's gender, with maternal dimensions playing a more important role in family socialization style.