Abstract
We examined the link between parent proneness to shame and two forms of psychological control, overprotection and critical/rejecting behavior, in parents of preschoolers. Because shame is self-condemning, proneness to shame affects intrapersonal and interpersonal functioning. We hypothesized that parents’ emotion-regulatory responses to shame would increase the likelihood of psychological control: anxiety by leading to overprotection mediated by a worrisome approach to the child, and anger/hostility by leading to critical/rejecting parenting mediated by negative reactivity to the child. Participants were 198 mother-father pairs with a child 3.6 to 4.5 years of age. Overprotective and critical/rejecting parenting were assessed using both self and spouse reports of parenting practices. In addition, parents completed measures of proneness to shame, worrisome overconcern about the child, and negative reactivity to the child. Structural equation modeling yielded results that supported mediation by negative approach to the child for mothers’ and fathers’ critical/rejecting behavior. For fathers but not mothers, shame was indirectly associated with overprotective parenting through worrisome approach to the child. Parents’ proneness to shame may be an important factor leading to the use of psychological control.
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Acknowledgments
This research was supported by Canadian Institutes of Health Research grant MOP-57670 awarded to the first author. The assistance of Manitoba Health is gratefully acknowledged. We thank the families who made this research possible, and the research assistants who helped collect the data: Sabrina Berry, Deanna Embry, Tara Haynes, Nadine Sigvaldason, Brooke Singer, and Nathan Wilson.
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Mills, R.S.L., Freeman, W.S., Clara, I.P. et al. Parent Proneness to Shame and the Use of Psychological Control. J Child Fam Stud 16, 359–374 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-006-9091-4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-006-9091-4