Suchergebnisse

This study used reactance theory as a starting point to explain what role a perceived undemocratic and controlling family has for adolescents' attitudes toward illegal political activity. We also examined whether adolescents' readiness to use illegal political means was related to actual political behavior, which has been lacking in research. Data came from a longitudinal two age-cohort sample of 720 adolescents (MC1 = 13.44; MC2 = 16.62) collected in a mid-sized city in Sweden. Results showed that adolescents who perceived their families as undemocratic and controlling increased in readiness to use illegal political means over time. In addition, older adolescents' attitudes were associated with actual political behavior. This highlights the role a perceived family environment has on adolescents' political identity development in today's democratic societies.

The nature of parenting and parent–child relationships is often dramatically affected by the historical period in which one raises children [...]

AbstractObjectiveWe examine the effect of children's sex and behaviors on parents' level of parental self‐efficacy (PSE).BackgroundPSE is a fundamental predictor of effective and positive parenting. Child characteristics could influence PSE and can help in understanding why some parents feel lower PSE.MethodWe randomly assigned 1,020 American parents to read one of four vignettes describing a 16‐year‐old boy or girl with either externalizing or internalizing behaviors. Then, parents reported on their level of PSE for this hypothetical adolescent. We ran analyses of variance, including the sex of parents' focal child (6th–12th grade) as a factor.ResultsParents reported higher levels of PSE for girls and for externalizing behaviors than for boys and internalizing behaviors, respectively. A three‐way interaction (vignette behavior × vignette sex × focal child's sex) was significant for the level of PSE. Parents whose focal child was a boy reported higher levels of PSE if they read a vignette of a boy with externalizing behaviors than if they read a vignette of a boy with internalizing behaviors. This was not found for parents whose focal child was a girl.ConclusionThe results gave partial support for a sex‐incongruent hypothesis, as parents might find it easier to relate to the problems described if they have at least one child of the same sex as the vignette child.ImplicationsThese results offer a test of the effect of children's sex and behavior on PSE that has been lacking in the PSE literature.

Studies have shown that parents reduce control and support in response to youths' drinking. Why they react this way, however, is still unknown. From cognitive dissonance theory, we derived hypotheses about parents' reactions. We used a longitudinal, school‐based sample of 494 youths (13 and 14 years, 56% boys) and their parents. General Linear Model (GLM) analyses were used to test the main hypotheses. In accord with our hypotheses, parents who encountered their youths intoxicated became less opposed to underage drinking over time. In addition, parents who remained strongly opposed to youth drinking experienced more worries than parents who became less opposed. Alternative explanations for the results were tested, but were not supported. The findings suggest that to eliminate the dissonance between their strict attitudes against youth drinking and their knowledge of their own youths' drinking, parents changed their attitudes and became more lenient.