Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Overparenting and Young Adults’ Interpersonal Sensitivity: Cultural and Parental Gender-Related Diversity

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

Abstract

The first goal of this study was to investigate whether levels of overparenting behavior (anticipatory problem-solving, advice/affect management, tangible assistance, and low levels of child self-direction) differ depending on the context (Arab-Israeli vs. Jewish-Israeli; mothers vs. fathers). Second, we considered whether the association between overparenting and young adults’ interpersonal sensitivity depends on those contexts. Questionnaires were collected from 165 triads (mothers, fathers, and young adults), of which 89 were Jewish-Israeli and 76 Arab-Israeli. Parents reported on their overparenting behaviors and young adults reported on their interpersonal sensitivity. Results indicated that all four dimensions of overparenting behaviors were more prominent in Arab-Israeli culture than in Jewish-Israeli culture, while advice/affect management was lower for mothers than for fathers and fathers provided more child self-direction than mothers. In addition, higher levels of anticipatory problem-solving were significantly associated with higher levels of young adult interpersonal sensitivity, independent of parental gender or cultural background, supporting the general negative association between anticipatory problem-solving and interpersonal sensitivity.

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.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Aunola, K., & Nurmi, J. E. (2005). The role of parenting styles in children’s problem behavior. Child Development, 76(6), 1144–1159. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8624.2005.00840.x-i1.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Aunola, K., Tolvanen, A., Viljaranta, J., & Nurmi, J. (2013). Psychological control in daily parent–child interactions increases children’s negative emotions. Journal of Family Psychology, 27(3), 453–462. doi:10.1037/a0032891.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Barber, B. K., & Harmon, E. L. (2002). Violating the self: Parental psychological control of children and adolescents. In B. K. Barber (Ed.), Intrusive parenting: How psychological control affects children and adolescents (pp. 15–52). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Barber, B. K., Stolz, H. E., Olsen, J. A., Collins, W. A., & Burchinal, M. (2005). Parental support, psychological control, and behavioral control: Assessing relevance across time, culture, and method. Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development, 70(4), 1–147.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Barber, B. K., Xia, M., Olsen, J. A., McNeely, C. A., & Bose, K. (2012). Feeling disrespected by parents: Refining the measurement and understanding of psychological control. Journal of Adolescence, 35(2), 273–287. doi:10.1016/j.adolescence.2011.10.010.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Barrett, P. (2007). Structural equation modelling: Adjudging model fit. Personality and Individual Differences, 42(5), 815–824. doi:10.1016/j.paid.2006.09.018.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bowen, N. K., & Guo, S. (2011). Structural equation modeling. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Boyce, P., & Parker, G. (1989). Development of a scale to measure interpersonal sensitivity. Australasian Psychiatry, 23(3), 341–351. doi:10.3109/00048678909068294.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bradley-Geist, C. J., & Olson-Buchanan, B. J. (2014). Helicopter parents: An examination of the correlates of over-parenting of college students. Education Training, 56(4), 314–328. doi:10.1108/ET-10-2012-0096.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bretherton, I. (2010). Fathers in attachment theory and research: A review. Early Child Development and Care, 180(1-2), 9–23. doi:10.1080/03004430903414661.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Buri, J. R. (1991). Parental authority questionnaire. Journal of Personality Assessment, 57(1), 110–119. doi:10.1207/s15327752jpa5701_13.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Central Bureau of Statistics (2013). Households. Economic characteristics and housing density based on labour force surveys [Publication No. 1617]. Retrieved from http://www.cbs.gov.il/webpub/pub/text_page_eng.html?publ=2&CYear=2013&CMonth=12.

  • Chao, R. K., & Aque, C. (2009). Interpretations of parental control by Asian immigrant and European American youth. Journal of Family Psychology, 23(3), 342–354. doi:10.1037/a0015828.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Cheung, G. W., & Rensvold, R. B. (2002). Evaluating goodness-of-fit indexes for testing measurement invariance. Structural Equation Modeling, 9(2), 233–255. doi:10.1207/S15328007SEM0902_5.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Coll, C., & Pachter, L. (2002). Ethnic and minority parenting. In M. H. Bornstein (Ed.), Handbook of parenting, volume 4. Social conditions and applied parenting (pp. 1–20). Mahwah, New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

    Google Scholar 

  • Collins, W. A., Madsen, S. D., & Susman-Stillman, A. (2005). Parenting during middle childhood. In M. Bornstein (Ed.), Handbook of parenting. Volume 1 children and parenting (pp. 73–101). London: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

    Google Scholar 

  • Craig, L. (2006). Does father care mean fathers share? A comparison of how mothers and fathers in intact families spend time with children. Gender & Society, 20(2), 259–281. doi:10.1177/0891243205285212.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dar, Y., & Resh, N. (1991). Socioeconomic and ethnic gaps in academic achievement in Israeli Junior High Schools. In N. Bleichrodt, & P. J. D. Drenth (Eds.), Contemporary issues in cross-cultural psychology (pp. 322–333). Amsterdam: Swets & Zeitlinger.

    Google Scholar 

  • Deci, E. L., & Ryan, R. M. (2000). The “what” and “why” of goal pursuits: Human needs and the self-determination of behavior. Psychological Inquiry, 11(4), 227–268. doi:10.1207/S15327965PLI1104_01.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Edwards, J. R., Caplan, R. D., & Van Harrison, R. (1998). Person-environment fit theory: conceptual foundations, empirical evidence, and directions for future research. In C. L. Cooper (Ed.), Theories of organizational stress (pp. 28–67). Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Eagly, A. H., & Wood, W. (1999). The origins of sex differences in human behavior: Evolved dispositions versus social roles. American Psychologist, 54(6), 408–423. doi:10.1037/0003-066X.54.6.408.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fingerman, K. L., Cheng, Y., Wesselmann, E. D., Zarit, S., Furstenberg, F., & Birditt, K. S. (2012). Helicopter parents and landing pad kids: Intense parental support of grown children. Journal of Marriage and Family, 74(4), 880–896. doi:10.1111/j.1741-3737.2012.00987.x.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Fung, J., & Lau, A. S. (2012). Tough love or hostile domination? psychological control and relational induction in cultural context. Journal of Family Psychology, 26(6), 966 doi:10.1037/a0030457.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Gilbreath, B., Kim, T. Y., & Nichols, B. (2011). Person-environment fit and its effects on university students: A response surface methodology study. Research in Higher Education, 52(1), 47–62. doi:10.1007/s11162-010-9182-3.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Harb, G., Heimberg, R., Fresco, D., Schneier, F., & Liebowitz, M. (2002). The psychometric properties of the interpersonal sensitivity measure in social anxiety disorder. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 40(8), 961–979. doi:10.1016/S0005-7967(01)00125-5.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kenny, D. A. (2011). Commentary: Dyadic analyses of family data. Journal of Pediatric Psychology. doi:10.1093/jpepsy/jsq124.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kim, S. Y. (2013). Defining tiger parenting in chines Americans. Human Development, 56(4), 217–222. doi:10.1159/000353711.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Kline, R. B. (2005). Principles and practice of structural equation modeling. New York, NY: Guilford.

    Google Scholar 

  • Larson, R., & Richards, M. H. (1994). Divergent realities: The emotional lives of mothers, fathers, and adolescents. New York, NY: Basic Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • LeMoyne, T., & Buchanan, T. (2011). Does “hovering” matter? helicopter parenting and its effect on well-being. Sociological Spectrum, 31(4), 399–418. doi:10.1080/02732173.2011.574038.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Milfont, T. L., & Fischer, R. (2010). Testing measurement invariance across groups: Applications in cross-cultural research. International Journal of Psychological Research, 3(1), 111–130. doi:10.21500/20112084.857.

    Google Scholar 

  • Muthén, L.K., & Muthén, B.O. (1998–2012). Mplus User's Guide. Seventh Edition. Los Angeles, CA: Muthén & Muthén.

  • Nelson, L. J., Padilla-Walker, L. M., Christensen, K. J., Evans, C. A., & Carroll, J. S. (2011). Parenting in emerging adulthood: An examination of parenting clusters and correlates. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 40(6), 730–743. doi:10.1007/s10964-010-9584-8.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Nelson, M. K. (2010). Parenting out of control: Anxious parents in uncertain times. New York, NY: New York University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Olsen, S. F., Yang, C., Hart, C. H., Robinson, Cc, Wu, P., Nelson, D. A., & Barber, B. K. (2002). Mothers’ psychological control and preschool children’s behavioral outcomes in China, Russia, and the United States. In B. K. Barber (Ed.). Intrusive parenting: How psychological control affects children and adolescents (pp. 235–262). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Olson, D. (2008). FACES IV manual. Minneapolis, MN: Life Innovations.

    Google Scholar 

  • Otani, K., Suzuki, A., Matsumoto, Y., & Kamata, M. (2009). Parental overprotection increases interpersonal sensitivity in healthy subjects. Comprehensive Psychiatry, 50(1), 54–57. doi:10.1016/j.comppsych.2008.05.009.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Padilla-Walker, L. M., & Nelson, L. J. (2012). Black hawk down?: Establishing helicopter parenting as a distinct construct from other forms of parental control during emerging adulthood. Journal of Adolescence, 35(5), 1177–1190. doi:10.1016/j.adolescence.2012.03.007.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Pomerantz, E. M., & Wang, Q. (2009). The role of parental control in children’s development in Western and East Asian countries. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 18(5), 285–289. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8721.2009.01653.x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rothbaum, F., & Trommsdorff, G. (2007). Do roots and wings complement or oppose one another?: The socialization of relatedness and autonomy in cultural context. In J. E. Grusec, & P. Hastings (Eds.), The handbook of socialization (pp. 461–489). New York, NY: The Guilford Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rousseau, S., & Scharf, M. (2015). “I will guide you” the indirect link between overparenting and young adults’ adjustment. Psychiatry Research. doi:10.1016/j.psychres.2015.05.016

  • Rudy, D., Awong, T., & Lambert, M. (2008). Parental psychological control and authoritarianism in ChineseCanadian and european-canadian cultural groups: Their meanings and implications for university students’ adjustment. Journal of Comparative Family Studies, 39(4), 471–490.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rudy, D., & Grusec, J. E. (2001). Correlates of authoritarian parenting in individualist and collectivist cultures and implications for understanding the transmission of values. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 32(2), 202–212. doi:10.1177/0022022101032002007.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rudy, D., & Halgunseth, L. C. (2005). Psychological control, maternal emotion and cognition, and child outcomes in individualist and collectivist groups. Journal of Emotional Abuse, 5(4), 237–264. doi:10.1300/J135v05n04_04.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sagy, S., Orr, E., Bar-on, D., & Awwad, E. (2001). Individualism and collectivism in two conflicted societies comparing israeli-jewish and palestinian-arab high school students. Youth & Society, 33(1), 3–30. doi:10.1177/0044118X01033001001.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sakado, K., Sato, T., Uehara, T., Sakado, M., & Someya, T. (1999). Perceived parenting pattern and response to antidepressants in patients with major depression. Journal of Affective Disorders, 52(1), 59–66. doi:10.1016/S0165-0327(98)00062-7.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Scharf, M., & Rousseau, S. (in press). One day I will make a good parent. on the relationship between overparenting and young adults’ perceived ability to relate well to children. Journal of Adult Development.

  • Scharf, M. (2014). Parenting in Israel: Together hand in hand, you are mine and I am yours. In H. Selin (Ed.), Parenting across cultures (pp. 193–206). New York, NY: Springer.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Schiffrin, H. H., Liss, M., Miles-McLean, H., Geary, K. A., Erchull, M. J., & Tashner, T. (2014). Helping or hovering? the effects of helicopter parenting on college students’ well-being. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 23(3), 548–557. doi:10.1007/s10826-013-9716-3.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Segrin, C., Givertz, M., Swaitkowski, P., & Montgomery, N. (2015). Overparenting is associated with child problems and a critical family environment. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 24(2), 470–479. doi:10.1007/s10826-013-9858-3.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Segrin, C., Woszidlo, A., Givertz, M., Bauer, A., & Taylor Murphy, M. (2012). The association between overparenting, parent‐child communication, and entitlement and adaptive traits in adult children. Family Relations, 61(2), 237–252. doi:10.1111/j.1741-3729.2011.00689.x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Steinberg, L., & Silk, J. S. (2002). Parenting adolescents. In M. H. Bornstein (Ed.), Handbook of parenting (pp. 103–133). New Jersey, NJ: Lawrence erlbaum associates.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tamres, L. K., Janicki, D., & Helgeson, V. S. (2002). Sex differences in coping behavior: A meta-analytic review and an examination of relative coping. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 6(1), 2–30. doi:10.1207/S15327957PSPR0601_1.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Thomas, G., Fletcher, G. J., & Lange, C. (1997). On-line empathic accuracy in marital interaction. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 72(4), 839–850. doi:10.1037/0022-3514.72.4.839.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Triandis, H. C. (2004). The many dimensions of culture. The Academy of Management Executive, 18(1), 88–93. doi:10.5465/AME.2004.12689599.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vera, J., Granero, R., & Ezpeleta, L. (2012). Father’s and mother’s perceptions of parenting styles as mediators of the effects of parental psychopathology on antisocial behavior in outpatient children and adolescents. Child Psychiatry and Human Development, 43(3), 376–392. doi:10.1007/s10578-011-0272-z.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Vidyanidhi, K., & Sudhir, P. M. (2009). Interpersonal sensitivity and dysfunctional cognitions in social anxiety and depression. Asian Journal of Psychiatry, 2(1), 25–28. doi:10.1016/j.ajp.2008.12.001.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Wang, Q., Pomerantz, E. M., & Chen, H. (2007). The role of parents’ control in early adolescents’ psychological functioning: A longitudinal investigation in the United States and China. Child Development, 78(5), 1592–1610. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8624.2007.01085.x.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Wilkowski, B. M., Robinson, M. D., & Friesen, C. K. (2009). Gaze-triggered orienting as a tool of the belongingness self-regulation system. Psychological Science, 20(4), 495–501. doi:10.1111/j.1467-9280.2009.02321.x.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Wright, M. O. D., Crawford, E., & Del Castillo, D. (2009). Childhood emotional maltreatment and later psychological distress among college students: The mediating role of maladaptive schemas. Child Abuse and Neglect, 33(1), 59–68. doi:10.1016/j.chiabu.2008.12.007.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Author notes

    Authors and Affiliations

    1. Department of Counseling and Human Development, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel

      Miri Scharf, Sofie Rousseau & Sujood Bsoul

    Authors
    1. Miri Scharf
      View author publications

      You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

    2. Sofie Rousseau
      View author publications

      You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

    3. Sujood Bsoul
      View author publications

      You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

    Corresponding author

    Correspondence to Sofie Rousseau.

    Ethics declarations

    Conflict of Interest

    The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

    Ethical Approval

    All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee 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.

    Additional information

    Miri Scharf and Sofie Rousseau contributed equally to this paper.

    Rights and permissions

    Reprints and permissions

    About this article

    Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

    Cite this article

    Scharf, M., Rousseau, S. & Bsoul, S. Overparenting and Young Adults’ Interpersonal Sensitivity: Cultural and Parental Gender-Related Diversity. J Child Fam Stud 26, 1356–1364 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-016-0652-x

    Download citation

    • Published:

    • Issue Date:

    • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-016-0652-x

    Keywords

    Search

    Navigation