University Presentation Showcase: Undergraduate Poster Gallery
Is Harsh Parenting Style Related to Negative Child Behaviors?
Abstract
There are many factors that influence children’s behaviors, and parenting style is certainly one of them. The purpose of this project was to answer the question “How strong is the relationship between harsh parenting style and children’s behavior?” For this meta-analysis, we located 10 studies that measured the strength of this relationship. The overall weighted average correlation between parenting style and child behaviors was r = .12. The set of studies allowed us to examine two moderator variables: 1) type of harsh parenting, including negative/strict parenting, parental coldness, and use of corporal punishment, and 2) type of negative behaviors, including depression, aggression, and antisocial behaviors. Although our findings showed relatively small effect sizes, they are typical for correlations between parenting style and child outcomes. Childhood behavior is influenced by many other factors in addition to parenting style.
