Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Maternal Beliefs, Adolescent Perceived Maternal Control and Psychological Competence in Poor Chinese Female-Headed Divorced Families

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Journal of Child and Family Studies Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Based on the data of 337 female-headed divorced families living in poverty in Hong Kong, the relationships among maternal beliefs (Chinese cultural beliefs of familism, maternal expectations of children’s future, maternal attribute of children’s achievement to effort), adolescents’ perceived maternal control and adolescent psychological competence (indexed by beliefs in the future, clear and positive identity, and resilience) were examined. Results indicated that adolescents’ perceived maternal control mediated the influence between maternal beliefs and adolescent psychological competence in poor female-headed divorced families in Hong Kong. With the paucity of research on family beliefs and indigenous parenting practice, the present study underscores the importance of maternal beliefs and maternal control on nurturing adolescent psychological competence in Chinese divorced families facing adversity, which contributes to the development of Chinese familial model of resilience. Theoretical and practical implications of the findings are discussed.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Fig. 1
Fig. 2

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Amato, P. R., & Keith, B. (1991). Parental divorce and the well-being of children: A meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin, 110, 26–46.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Anderson, C. (2003). The diversity, strengths, and challenges of single-parent households. In F. Walsh (Ed.), Normal family processes: Growing diversity and complexity (pp. 121–151). New York: Guilford.

    Google Scholar 

  • Arbuckle, J. L. (2007). Amos 16.0 user’s guide. Chicago: Amos Development Corporation.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bandalos, D. L., & Finney, S. J. (2001). Item parceling issues in structural equation modeling. In G. A. Marcoulides & R. E. Schumacker (Eds.), New developments and techniques in structural equation modeling (pp. 269–296). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Inc.

    Google Scholar 

  • Baron, R. M., & Kenny, D. A. (1986). The moderator–mediator variable distinction in social psychological research: Conceptual, strategic, and statistical considerations. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 51, 1173–1182.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bempechat, J., Graham, S. E., & Jimenez, N. V. (1999). The socialization of achievement in poor and minority students: A comparative study. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 30(2), 139–158.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Benson, P. L. (1997). All kids are our kids: What communities must do to raise caring and responsible children and adolescents. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

    Google Scholar 

  • Borkowski, J. G., Weyhing, R. S., & Carr, M. (1988). Effects of attributional retaining on strategy-based reading comprehension in learning-disabled students. Journal of Educational Psychology, 80, 46–53.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bornstein, M. H., & Cheah, C. S. L. (2006). The place of “culture and parenting” in the ecological contextual perspective on developmental science. In K. H. Rubin & O. B. Chung (Eds.), Parenting beliefs, behaviors, and parent–child relationship (pp. 3–34). New York: Taylor & Francis Group.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bowen, N., & Guo, S. (2012). Structural equation modeling. New York: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Byrne, B. M. (2001). Structural equation modeling with AMOS: Basic concepts, applications, and programming. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Inc.

    Google Scholar 

  • Catalano, R. F., Berglund, M. L., Ryan, J. A. M., Lonczak, H. S., & Hawkins, J. D. (2002). Positive youth development in the United States: Research findings on evaluation of positive youth development programs. Prevention and Treatment, 5(Article 15), 1–111.

    Google Scholar 

  • Census and Statistical Department. (2011). 2011 Population census thematic report: Single parent. [Electronic version]. Retrieved March 2, 2015 from http://www.statistics.gov.hk/pub/B11200652013XXXXB0100.pdf

  • Census and Statistical Department. (2013). Thematic report: Single parent. [Electronic version]. Retrieved March 2, 2015 from http://www.statistics.gov.hk/pub/B11200652013XXXXB0100.pdf

  • Census and Statistics Department. (2001). 2001 Population census thematic report: Single parent. [Electronic version]. Retrieved March 2, 2015 from http://www.statistics.gov.hk/pub/B11200352001XXXXB0100.pdf

  • Chan, L. K. S. (1994). Relationship of motivation, strategic learning and achievement in Grades 5, 7 and 9. Journal of Experimental Education, 62, 319–342.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chant, S. (2007). Gender, generation and poverty. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Chao, R. K. (1994). Beyond parental control and authoritarian parenting style: Understanding Chinese parenting through the cultural notion of training. Child Development, 65, 1111–1119.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Chao, R. K., & Tseng, V. (2002). Parenting in asians. In M. H. Bornstein (Ed.), Handbook of parenting. Vol. 4: Social conditions and applied parenting (pp. 59–93). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Publishers.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chapman, J. W., & Tunmer, W. E. (1995). Development of young children’s reading self-concepts: An examination of emerging subcomponents and their relationship with reading achievement. Journal of Educational Psychology, 87(1), 154–167.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chen, X., Dong, Q., & Zhou, H. (1997). Authoritative and authoritarian parenting practices and social and school performance in Chinese children. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 21(4), 855–873.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chen, X., Liu, M., & Li, D. (2000). Parental warmth, control, and indulgence and their relations to adjustment in Chinese children: A longitudinal study. Journal of Family Psychology, 14(3), 401–419.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Cheung, G. W., & Rensvold, R. B. (2002). Evaluating goodness-of-fit indexes for testing measurement invariance. Structural Equation Modeling, 9, 233–255.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chinese Statistics Bureau. (2013). 2012 China statistics yearbook. Beijing: Chinese Statistical Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cole, D. A., & Maxwell, S. E. (2003). Testing mediational models with longitudinal data: Questions and tips in the use of structural equation modeling. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 112(4), 558–577.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Curran, P. J., West, S. G., & Finch, J. F. (1996). The robustness of test statistics to nonnormality and specification error in confirmatory factor analysis. Psychological Methods, 1, 16–29.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Damon, W. (2004). What is positive youth development? Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 591, 13–24.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Eamon, M. K., & Zuehl, R. M. (2001). Maternal depression and physical punishment as mediators of the effect of poverty on socioemotional problems of children in single-mother families. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 71, 218–226.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Eccles, J. S., Wigfield, A., & Schiefele, U. (1998). Motivation to succeed. In W. Damon & N. Eisenberg (Eds.), Handbook of child psychology, Vol. 3: Social, emotional and personality development (Vol. 3, pp. 1017–1097). N.Y.: Wiley.

    Google Scholar 

  • Education and Manpower Bureau. (2003). Users’ and training manual for measuring secondary students’ performance in affective and social domains. Hong Kong: Education and Manpower Bureau.

    Google Scholar 

  • Garmezy, N. (1993). Children in poverty: Resilience despite risk. Psychiatry, 56, 127–136.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hall, R. J., Snell, A. F., & Singer Foust, M. (1999). Item parceling strategies in SEM: Investigating the subtle effects of unmodeled secondary constructs. Organizational Research Methods, 2(3), 233–256.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hsieh, M. O., & Shek, D. T. L. (2008). Personal and family correlates of resilience among adolescents living in single-parent households in Taiwan. Journal of Divorce & Remarriage, 49(3–4), 330–348.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hu, L., & Bentler, P. M. (1999). Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis: Conventional criteria versus new alternatives. Structural Equation Modeling, 6, 1–55.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jones, D. J., Zalot, A. A., Foster, S. E., Sterrett, E., & Chesterm, C. (2007). A review of childrearing in African American single mother families: The relevance of a coparenting framework. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 16, 671–683.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kline, R. B. (2005). Principles and practice of structural equation modeling (2nd ed.). New York: The Guilford Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lebow, J. (2012). Editorial: Experiencing Sorrow and Loss. Family Process, 51(4), 437–439.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Leung, K., Lau, S., & Lam, W. L. (1998). Parenting styles and achievement: A cross-cultural study. Merrill-Palmer Quarterly, 44, 157–172.

    Google Scholar 

  • Leung, J. T. Y., & Shek, D. T. L. (2011a). Expecting my child to become “Dragon”—Development of the Chinese Parental Expectation on Child’s Future Scale. International Journal of Disability and Human Development, 10(3), 257–265.

    Google Scholar 

  • Leung, J. T. Y., & Shek, D. T. L. (2011b). Validation of the Chinese Parental Expectation on Child’s Future Scale. International Journal of Disability and Human Development, 10(3), 267–274.

    Google Scholar 

  • Leung, J. T. Y., & Shek, D. T. L. (2015a). Parental attributions of children’s success and failure and family processes in poor Chinese families. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 24(8), 2191–2203.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Leung, J. T. Y., & Shek, D. T. L. (2015b). Parental beliefs and parental sacrifice of Chinese parents experiencing economic disadvantage in Hong Kong: Implications for social work. British Journal of Social Work, 45(4), 1119–1136.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Leung J. T. Y., & Shek, D. T. L. (in press). The influence of parental beliefs on the development of Chinese adolescents experiencing economic disadvantage: Maternal control as a mediator. Journal of Family Issues. doi: 10.1177/0192513X13518776

  • LeVine, R. A. (1988). Human parental care: Universal goals, cultural strategies, individual behavior. New Directions for Child and Adolescent Development, 40, 3–12.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lipman, E. L., Boyle, M. H., Dooley, M. D., & Offord, D. R. (2002). Child well-being in single-mother families. Journal of American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 41, 75–82.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Luthar, S. S., Cicchetti, D., & Becker, B. (2000). The construct of resilience: A critical evaluation and guidelines for future work. Child Development, 71(3), 543–562.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • MacCallum, R., Browne, M., & Sugawara, H. (1996). Power analysis and determination of sample size for covariance structure modeling. Psychological Methods, 1, 130–149.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • MacCallum, R. C., Widaman, K. F., Zhang, S., & Hong, S. (1999). Sample size in factor analysis. Psychological Methods, 4, 84–99.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Matsunaga, M. (2008). Item parceling in structural equation modeling: A primer. Communication Methods and Measures, 2(4), 260–293.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McBride-Chang, C., & Chang, L. (1998). Adolescent-parent relations in Hong Kong: Parenting styles, emotional autonomy, and school achievement. Journal of Genetic Psychology, 159(4), 421–436.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • McLoyd, V. C. (1990). The impact of economic hardship on black families and children: Psychological distress, parenting, and socioemotional development. Child Development, 61, 311–346.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Millar, J., & Ridge, T. (2009). Relationships of care: Working lone mothers, their children and employment sustainability. Journal of Social Policy, 38, 103–121.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Murry, V. M., & Brody, G. H. (1999). Self-regulation and self-worth of black children reared in economically stressed, rural, single mother-headed families. Journal of Family Issues, 20, 458–484.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nelson, D. A., Hart, C. H., Yang, C., Olsen, J. A., & Jin, S. (2006). Aversive parenting in China: Associations with child physical and relational aggression. Child Development, 77(3), 554–572.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Padmawidjaja, I. A., & Chao, R. K. (2010). Parental beliefs and their relation to the parental practices of immigrant Chinese Americans and European Americans. In S. T. Russell, L. J. Crockett, & R. K. Chao (Eds.), Asian American parenting and parent–adolescent relationships (pp. 37–60). New York: Springer Science and Business Media.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Paterson, W. A. (2001). Unbroken homes: Single-parent mothers tell their stories. New York: Haworth Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Patterson, J. M. (2002). Understanding family resilience. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 58(3), 233–246.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Phillipson, S. (2006). Cultural variability in parent and child achievement attributions: A study in Hong Kong. Educational Psychology, 26(5), 625–642.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Preacher, K. J., & Hayes, A. F. (2008). Asymptotic and resampling strategies for assessing and comparing indirect effects in multiple mediator models. Behavior Research Methods, 40(3), 879–891.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rice, J. K. (2001). Forward. In W. A. Paterson (Ed.), Unbroken homes: Single-parent mothers tell their stories (pp. 11–13). New York: Haworth Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sameroff, A. (2009). The transactional model. In A. Sameroff (Ed.), The transactional model of development: How children and contexts shape each other (pp. 3–21). Washington, DC, US: American Psychological Association.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Schoon, I., Parson, S., & Sacker, A. (2004). Socioeconomic adversity, educational resilience, and subsequent levels of adult adaptation. Journal of Adolescent Research, 19(4), 383–404.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shek, D. T. L. (1993). Measurement of pessimism in Chinese adolescents: The Chinese Hopelessness Scale. Social Behaviour and Personality, 21, 107–119.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shek, D. T. L. (2004). Chinese cultural beliefs about adversity: Its relationship to psychological well-being, school adjustment and problem behaviour in Hong Kong adolescents with and without economic disadvantage. Childhood, 11, 63–80.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shek, D. T. L. (2005). Perceived parental control processes, parent–child relational qualities, and psychological well-being in Chinese adolescents with and without economic disadvantages. The Journal of Genetic Psychology, 166(2), 171–188.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Shek, D. T. L. (2007). Perceived parental control based on indigenous Chinese parental concepts in adolescents in Hong Kong. The American Journal of Family Therapy, 35, 123–137.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shek, D. T. L. (2008). Perceived parental control and parent–child relational qualities in early adolescents in Hong Kong: Parent gender, child gender and grade differences. Sex Roles, 58, 666–681.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shek, D. T. L., & Chan, L. K. (1999). Hong Kong Chinese parents’ perceptions of the ideal child. The Journal of Psychology, 133(3), 291–302.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shek, D. T. L., Siu, A. M. H., & Lee, T. Y. (2007). The Chinese Positive Youth Development Scale: A validation study. Research on social Work Practice, 17, 380–391.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shiang, J., Kjellander, C., Huang, K., & Bogumill, S. (1998). Developing cultural competency in clinical practice: Treatment considerations for Chinese cultural groups in the United States. Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice, 5, 182–210.

    Google Scholar 

  • Smetana, J. G., & Daddis, C. (2002). Domain-specific antecedents of parental psychological control and monitoring: The role of parenting beliefs and practices. Child Development, 71, 1072–1085.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sun, R. C. F., & Shek, D. T. L. (2012). Beliefs in the future as a positive youth development construct: A conceptual review. The Scientific World Journal,. doi:10.1100.2012/527038.

    Google Scholar 

  • Super, C. M., & Harkness, S. (1986). The developmental niche: A conceptualization at the interface of child and culture. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 9, 545–569.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ting, K. F., & Chiu, S. W. (2002). Leaving the parental home: Chinese culture in an urban context. Journal of Marriage and Family, 64(3), 614–626.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tsang, S. K., Hui, E. K., & Law, B. (2012). Positive identity as a positive youth development construct: A conceptual review. The Scientific World Journal,. doi:10.1100/2012/529691.

    Google Scholar 

  • United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division (2009). World Marriage Data 2008 (POP/DB/Marr/Rev2008). [Electronic version]. Retrieved July 28, 2015 from http://www.un.org/esa/population/publications/WMD2008/WP_WMD_2008/Data.html

  • Vandenberg, R. J., & Scarpello, V. (1991). Multitrait-multimethod validation of the satisfaction with my supervisor scale. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 52, 203–212.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Walsh, F. (2006). Strengthening family resilience (2nd ed.). New York: The Guilford Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Weiner, B. (1974). Achievement motivation and attribution theory. Morristown, NJ: General Learning Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wells, L. E., & Rankin, J. H. (1991). Families and delinquency: A meta-analysis of the impact of broken homes. Social Problems, 38(1), 71–93.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wordlaw-Stinson, L. (2003). Book Review: Unbroken Homes: Single Parent Mothers Tell Their Stories. Wendy A. Paterson, New York: 2001, 409. pp. 27.95 (paperback), 69.95 (hard cover). Sex Roles, 49(3), 193.

  • Xu, Y., Fraver, J. A. M., Zhang, Z., Zeng, Q., Yu, L., & Cai, B. (2005). Mainland Chinese parenting styles and parent–child interaction. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 29(6), 524–531.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yang, K. S. (2006). Indigenized conceptual and empirical analyses of selected Chinese psychological characteristics. International Journal of Psychology, 41(4), 298–303.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yeh, M. H., & Yang, K. S. (1997). Chinese familism: Conceptual analysis and empirical assessment. Bulletin of the Institute of Ethnology, Academia Sinica (Taiwan), 83, 169–225. [in Chinese].

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Funding

This research was financially supported by the Departmental General Research Fund of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (Project Code: G-UB-52).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Applied Social Sciences, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong

    Janet T. Y. Leung

Authors
  1. Janet T. Y. Leung
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Janet T. Y. Leung.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of Interest

The author declares that she has no conflict of interest.

Ethical Standard

The author declares that all procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of Human Subjects Ethics Sub-committee of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

Informed Consent

Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Leung, J.T.Y. Maternal Beliefs, Adolescent Perceived Maternal Control and Psychological Competence in Poor Chinese Female-Headed Divorced Families. J Child Fam Stud 25, 1815–1828 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-016-0367-z

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-016-0367-z

Keywords

Search

Navigation