Parenting Styles and Aggression Among Young Adolescents: a Systematic Review of Literature
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Community Mental Health Journal (2019) 55:1015–1030 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10597-019-00400-0 ORIGINAL PAPER Parenting Styles and Aggression Among Young Adolescents: A Systematic Review of Literature Hamid Masud1,2 · Muhammad Shakil Ahmad3 · Ki Woong Cho4 · Zainab Fakhr5 Received: 14 May 2017 / Accepted: 6 May 2019 / Published online: 17 May 2019 © Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature 2019 Abstract There is ample research on aggression amongst children and adolescents that highlights several antecedents of aggression. While researchers have remarked on the relationship between parenting styles and aggression in children, there are few stud- ies that integrate and systemize the available studies on parenting styles and aggression. The present review is an attempt to fll this gap. For this review, relevant studies were frst searched, then coded and classifed. As a result of thorough review, 34 relevant studies were identifed. The review shows that parenting styles have a direct impact on aggression in children. Authoritative parenting styles play a positive role in psychological behavior in children while authoritarian and permissive parenting styles result in aggressive and negative behaviors in children. The current study also suggests that there is room to conduct studies on this topic in developing countries. Future research should be undertaken in developing and under- developed countries and should focus on mixed modes of research and examine the direct infuence of parenting styles on aggressive behavior in children in diferent cultural contexts. Keywords Aggression · Child mental health · Aggressive behavior · Family support · Systematic literature review Introduction damages relationships with others. Freud (1937) stated that aggression is a reaction to a varying level of conficts of During the last few decades, researchers in the field of interest. It is observed that aggressive children face psycho- aggression have devoted their attention to relational, social, logical disturbance. It is a serious mental health issue which and indirect aggression (Underwood et al. 2009). For these is faced by both Western and Eastern countries (McNamara types of aggression, the term relational aggression is used et al. 2010), and in many cases, once it is identifed in child- here to distinguish it from physical aggression. It is concep- hood, it is harmful for the child’s psychological growth tually recognized as the type of aggression which usually (Huesmann et al. 2009). Such children have additional behavioral problems that increase in intensity with the pas- sage of time (Dodge et al. 2006). During adulthood, these * Hamid Masud [email protected] problems then lead towards behavioral disorders, sometimes resulting in criminal behavior (Huesmann et al. 2009). * Muhammad Shakil Ahmad [email protected] The literature on aggression has identifed various ante- cedents. Among them, biological and psychological fac- 1 COMSATS University Islamabad (Virtual Campus), 166, tors are of greater interest for researchers, who have found Street 9, I-10/3, Islamabad, Pakistan family factors as of paramount importance as they directly 2 Universiti Sultan Zainal Abidin, Gong Badak, and indirectly impact on aggressive behavior (Raine 2002). 21300 Kuala Terengganu, Terengganu, Malaysia Parenting style is one of the most dominant factors which 3 Department of Management Sciences, COMSATS University directly and indirectly infuence psychological growth of Islamabad, Attock Campus, Attock 43600, Pakistan children (Crick et al. 1999). Studies examining parenting 4 College of Political Science and Economics, Research styles and aggression have shown that the way parents Professor/Postdoctoral Researcher, Korea University, 145, interact with their children can have both positive and neg- Anam-Ro, Seongbuk-gu, Seoul 02841, South Korea ative results (Reed et al. 2008). Research on child learning 5 Guildhall School of Business and Law, London Metropolitan and behavior has shown that diferences in behaviors in University, London, UK Vol.:(0123456789)1 3 1016 Community Mental Health Journal (2019) 55:1015–1030 children occur due to diferent parenting styles (Collins A Brief Analysis of Parenting Styles and Laursen 1999). The role of parenting in child aggres- sion has even greater impact as child behavior is shaped Three parenting styles, authoritative, authoritarian, and by the parenting behavior. This fact has been supported permissive were derived from the classifcation of Baum- by social learning theory (Bandura 1973). According to rind’s theory ((1971)). According to Baumrind (1971), this theory, people learn from others by observing their actions. In the frst stage, people observe the actions which 1. Authoritative parents are supportive in nature. They lay they mentally rehearse later, keeping in mind the ultimate down guiding principles and try to maintain a balance consequences of adopting such behaviors. Later on, they in afection and discipline. adopt such actions, implementing them in their daily 2. Authoritarian parenting represents traditional harsh par- lives. It is equally possible that there may be no change enting in which children is required to obey the instruc- in behavior even after observing actions of other people. tions of their parents. There is also the concept of pun- Behavioral adjustment and social competence of children ishment associated with authoritarian parenting. is based on understanding their needs and parents limit- 3. Permissive parents leave their children free to have their setting behavior (Baumrind 1991). This phenomenon can own preferences. Such parents do not restrict the social be better explained with the help of Baumrind’s parent- life of children and encourage them to plan at their con- ing style theory (1971). According to the parenting styles venience. theory, there are three diferent types of parenting behavior which have direct infuence on the psychological growth Parenting styles result in behavioral and psychological of children which include authoritative, authoritarian and adjustments of children. These behavioral and psychologi- permissive parenting styles. Each of these parenting styles cal characteristics include: academic achievement (Lam- is directly and indirectly associated with psychological born and Dornbusch 1991), self-reliance, social compe- growth of children and thus on aggressive behavior but an tence (Steinberg 1990), academic achievement (Steinberg authoritarian parenting style is particularly linked with et al. 1989), substance use (Baumrind 1991), peer group aggression and aggressive behavior in children and adoles- selection (Brown et al. 1993) and adolescent drinking and cents. Since aggression can be harmful for both perpetrator delinquency (Barnes and Farrell 1992). and victim, the current review will integrate the studies The parenting styles of mothers are associated with that analyze the relationship between parenting styles and behavioral strategies at school and children’s cognitive aggression. Therefore, the goal of the current review is to control (Tiina et al. 1998). In addition, it was found that synthesize and integrate the studies on parenting styles and children showed more determination in classroom and aggression in order to identify the main methodological were less vulnerable where mother authoritarian behavior factors associated with this relationship. was observed. Parents who raise their children with care Research shows that parenting style is the combination and give them proper time as well as facilitate them have of the diferent sets of parenting behaviors that contribute a stronger efect on the development of children (Baum- to competency, child development, or psychopathology rind 1971). Thus it can be concluded that parenting styles, (McKee et al. 2008). Child modeling behavior and emotional especially the authoritarian parenting style, have a direct control are afected by these parenting styles. Also, parent- impact on the aggression of adolescents. ing styles afect the behavioral development of children (Lorber and Egeland 2011). Positive and negative behavior in children is the result of these parenting styles. Each par- Objectives of the Study enting style shapes the behavioral adjustment of children (Romano et al. 2005). Keeping in view the importance of Following are the objectives of this paper: parenting styles in the psychological growth of the child, the current review is an attempt to synthesize and integrate • To identify studies related to parenting styles and past studies in order to examine the relationship between aggression parenting styles and aggressive behavior of children. For this • To classify and code studies/articles purpose, 34 relevant studies have been analyzed to examine • To summarize the contribution of each article the relationship. Detailed descriptions of these studies are • To highlight the strengths and weaknesses of available given in the upcoming sections. The review proceeds with literature the brief introduction of parenting styles and their relation- • To provide a research agenda on parenting styles and ships to aggression in children. In Sect. 2, a brief overview aggression for the future of the methodology is given. Finally, the review ends with discussion and practical implications. 1 3 Community Mental Health Journal (2019) 55:1015–1030 1017 Research Question Step 2 The classifcation system is coded. Step 3 The classifcation system is applied. How efective are parenting