Relating parenting styles and children's temperament to behavioral adjustment and academic achievement of Taiwanese children

Date

1998-08

Journal Title

Journal ISSN

Volume Title

Publisher

Texas Tech University

Abstract

The first purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between parenting styles (authoritarian, authoritative, and permissive) and children's temperament (emotionality, activity, and sociability). The second purpose of this study was to examine how the parenting stylea, along with children's temperament, predicted children's behavioral adjustment. The third purpose of this study was to examine how parenting styles, along with children's temperament, predicted children's academic achievement.

Two hundred thirty Taiwanese (108 boys and 122 girls) fourth, fifth, and sixth grade children from ten elementary schools in Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China participated in the study. Children's homeroom teachers and parents were also recmited to participate in the study. Multiple regression was conducted to test each research question.

Results showed that the parenting styles were significantly associated with children's temperament. Specifically, children whose parents used higher levels of authoritarian parenting were also scored higher on emotionality. Children whose parents used higher levels of authoritative parenting were more sociable. Second, parenting styles and children's temperament showed significant relations with children's behavioral adjustment. Sociable children and children who experienced authoritative parenting had better behavioral adjustment. Third, parenting styles and children's temperament were related to children's academic achievement. Sociable children had higher academic performance and children who experienced authoritarian parenting showed lower academic achievement.

These results clearly showed that children experiencing different kinds of parenting styles tend to have different patterns of temperament. Furthermore, the parenting styles and children's temperament showed different patterns of prediction for children's behavioral adjustment and academic achievement.

Description

Citation