Abstract
The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship among adolescents’ indecisiveness, adolescents’ self-esteem, and maternal and paternal psychological control by focusing on the differences in the relationship among these variables across adolescent genders. A total of 381 Italian adolescents (215 boys and 166 girls), aged from 13 to 17 years, completed self-report measures of parental psychological control, self-esteem and indecisiveness. Since previous studies have highlighted indirect relations between family characteristics and indecisiveness, structural equation modeling (SEM) methods were used for testing self-esteem as a possible mediator. In particular, a multiple group analysis (based on adolescent genders) was conducted to determine if the resultant model differed for boys and girls. The results showed that self-esteem acted as mediator of the relation between paternal psychological control and boys’ indecisiveness. Moreover, this study shows how maternal and paternal psychological control is differently related to children’s development during early adolescence, emphasizing the important relationship between paternal psychological control and boys’ indecisiveness.
References
Allen, J. P., Hauser, S. T., Bell, K. L., & O’Connor, T. G. (1994). Longitudinal assessment of autonomy and relatedness in adolescent-family interactions as predictors of adolescent ego development and self-esteem. Child Development, 65(1), 179–194. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8624.1994.tb00743.x.
Arbuckle, J. L. (1997). Amos Users’ Guide Version 3.6. Chicago: Small Waters Corporation.
Bacanli, F. (2006). Personality characteristics as predictors of personal indecisiveness. Journal of Career Development, 32(4), 320–332. doi:10.1177/0894845305282941.
Bacanli, F. (2012). An examination of the relationship amongst decision-making strategies and ego identity statuses. Eğitim ve Bilim, 37(163), 17–28.
Bámaca, M. Y., Umaña-Taylor, A. J., Shin, N., & Alfaro, E. C. (2005). Latino adolescents’ perception of parenting behaviors and self-esteem: examining the role of neighborhood risk. Family Relations, 54(5), 621–632. doi:10.1111/j.1741-3729.2005.00346.x.
Barber, B. K. (1996). Parental psychological control: revisiting a neglected construct. Child Development, 67, 3296–3319. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8624.1996.tb01915.x.
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.
Bean, R. A., & Northrup, J. C. (2009). Parental psychological control, psychological autonomy and acceptance as predictors of self-esteem in Latino adolescents. Journal of Family Issues, 30, 1486–1504. doi:10.1177/0192513X09339149.
Beswick, G., Rothblum, E. D., & Mann, L. (1988). Psychological antecedents to students procrastination. Australian Psychologist, 23, 207–217.
Blustein, D. L., Walbridge, M. M., Friedlander, M. L., & Palladino, D. E. (1991). Contributions of psychological separation and parental attachment to the career development process. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 38(1), 39–50. doi:10.1037/0022-0167.38.1.39.
Bronstein, P. (1988). Father-child interactions: Implications for gender-role socialization. In P. Bronstein & C. Cowan (Eds.), Fatherhood today (pp. 107–123). New York: Wiley.
Burka, J. B., & Yuen, L. M. (1983). Procrastination: Why do it and what to do about it. Reading: Addison-Wesley.
Byrne, B. M. (2001). Structural equation modeling with AMOS: Basic concepts, applications, and programming (pp. 79–88). Mahwah: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.
Cacioppo, M., Pace, U., & Zappulla, C. (2012). Parental psychological control, quality of family context and life satisfaction among Italian adolescents. Child Indicators Research, 6, 179–191. doi:10.1007/s12187-012-9164-4.
Cantor, N., & Sanderson, C. A. (1998). The functional regulation of adolescent dating relationships and sexual behavior: An interaction of goals, strategies, and situations. In J. Heckhausen & C. S. Dweck (Eds.), Motivation and self-regulation across the life span (pp. 185–215). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Caprara, G. V., Pastorelli, C., Regalia, C., Scabini, E., & Bandura, A. (2005). Impact of adolescents’ filial self-efficacy on quality of family functioning and satisfaction. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 15, 71–97. doi:10.1111/j.1532-7795.2005.00087.x.
Cenkseven-Onder, F. (2012). The influence of decision-making styles on early adolescents’ life satisfaction. Social Behavior and Personality: An International Journal, 40(9), 1523–1536.
Chartrand, J. M., Robbins, S. B., Morrill, W. H., & Boggs, K. (1990). The development and validation of the career factors inventory. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 37, 490–501.
Collins, W. A., & Laursen, B. (2004). Parent–adolescent relationships and influences. In R. M. Lerner & L. Steinberg (Eds.), Handbook of adolescent psychology (2nd ed., pp. 331–361). Hoboken: Wiley.
Deroma, V. M., Lassiter, K. S., & Davis, V. A. (2004). Adolescent involvement in discipline decision making. Behavior Modification, 28(3), 420–437. doi:10.1177/0145445503258993.
Di Fabio, A. (2006). Decisional procrastination correlates: personality traits, self-esteem or perception of cognitive failure? International Journal for Educational and Vocational Guidance, 6, 109–122. doi:10.1007/s10775-006-9000-9.
Di Fabio, A., & Palazzeschi, L. (2012). Incremental variance of the core self-evaluation construct compared to fluid intelligence and personality traits in aspects of decision-making. Personality and Individual Differences, 53, 196–201.
Di Maggio, R., & Zappulla, C. (2013). Mothering, fathering, and Italian adolescents’ problem behaviors and life satisfaction: dimensional and typological approach. Journal of Child and Family Studies. doi:10.1007/s10826-013-9721-6.
Feldman, D. C. (2003). The antecedents and consequences of early career indecision among young adults. Human Resource Management Review, 13, 499–531. doi:10.1016/S1053-4822(03)00048-2.
Ferrari, J. R. (1992). Procrastinators and perfect behavior: an exploratory factor analysis of self-presentation, selfawareness, and self-handicapping components. Journal of Research in Personality, 26, 75–84. doi:10.1002/per.413.
Ferrari, J. R. (2000). Procrastination and attention: Factor analysis of attention deficit, boredomness, intelligence, self-esteem and task delay frequencies. Journal of Social Behavior and Personality, 15, 185–196.
Ferrari, J. R., & Dovidio, J. F. (2001). Behavioral information search by indecisives. Personality and Individual Differences, 30, 1113–1123. doi:10.1016/S0191-8869(00)00094-5.
Ferrari, J. R., & Olivette, M. J. (1993). Perceptions of parental control and the development of indecision among late adolescent females. Adolescence, 28, 963–970.
Flett, G. L., Hewitt, P. L., & Martin, T. R. (1995). Dimensions of perfectionism and procrastination. In J. R. Ferrari, J. L. Johnson, & W. G. McCown (Eds.), Procrastination and task avoidance: Theory, research and treatment (pp. 113–136). New York: Plenum Press.
Frost, R. O., & Shows, D. L. (1993). The nature and measurement of compulsive indecisiveness. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 31, 683–692. doi:10.1016/0005-7967(93)90121-A.
Galambos, N. L., Almeida, D. M., & Petersen, A. C. (1990). Masculinity, femininity, and sex role attitudes in early adolescence: exploring gender intensification. Child Development, 61, 1905–1914. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8624.1990.tb03574.x.
Germeijs, V., & De Boeck, P. (2002). A measurement scale for indecisiveness and its relationship to career indecision and other types of indecision. European Journal of Psychological Assessment, 18(2), 113–122. doi:10.1027//1015-5759.18.2.113.
Germeijs, V., & Verschueren, K. (2011). Indecisiveness and big five personality factors: relationship and specificity. Personality and Individual Differences, 50, 1023–1028. doi:10.1016/j.paid.2011.01.017.
Germeijs, V., Verschueren, K., & Soenens, B. (2006). Indecisiveness and high school students’ career decision-making process: longitudinal associations and the mediational role of anxiety. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 53, 397–410. doi:10.1037/00220167.53.4.397.
Guay, F., Senécal, C., Gauthier, L., & Fernet, C. (2003). Predicting career indecision: a self-determination theory perspective. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 50(2), 165–177. doi:10.1037/0022-0167.50.2.165.
Güçray, S. S. (2005). A study of the decision-making behaviours of Turkish adolescents. Pastoral Care in Education, 23(1), 34–44. doi:10.1111/j.0264-3944.2005.00320.x.
Guzzo, G., Lo Cascio, V., & Pace, U. (2013). The role of individual and relational characteristics on alcohol consumption among Italian adolescents: a discriminant function analysis. Child Indicators Research, 6(3), 605–618. doi:10.1007/s12187-013-9188-4.
Guzzo, G., Lo Cascio, V., Pace, U., & Zappulla, C. (2014). Psychometric properties and convergent validity of the dependency-oriented and achievement-oriented psychological control scale (DAPCS) with Italian adolescents. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 23, 1258–1267. doi:10.1007/s10826-013-9786-2.
Haraburda, E. M. (1988). The relationship of indecisiveness to the five factor personality model and psychological symptomology. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Ohio State University, Columbus OH.
Harter, S. (1990). Identity and self development. In S. Feldman & G. Elliott (Eds.), At the threshold: The developing adolescent (pp. 352–387). Cambridge: HarvardUniversity Press.
Hollingshead, A. B. (1975). Four factor index of social status. Unpublished working paper, Department of Sociology, Yale University.
Holtgraves, T. (2004). Social desirability and self-reports: testing models of socially desirable responding. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 30(2), 161–172. doi:10.1177/0146167203259930.
Honaker, J., & King, G. (2010). What to do about missing values in time-series cross-section data. American Journal of Political Science, 54, 561–581.
Hu, L. T., & Bentler, P. M. (1999). Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis: conventional criteria versus new alternatives. Structural Equation Modeling: A Multidisciplinary Journal, 6, 1–55. doi:10.1080/10705519909540118.
Janis, I. L., & Mann, L. (1977). Decision making: A psychological analysis of conflict, choice, and commitment. New York: Free Press.
Janis, I., & Mann, L. (1979). Decision making. A psychological analysis of conflict, choice, and commitment. New York: The Free Press, A division of Macmillan Inc.
Laghi, F., Baiocco, R., Lonigro, A., & Baumgartner, E. (2012). The role of parenting styles and alcohol expectancies in teen binge drinking: a preliminary investigation among Italian adolescents and their parents. Drugs: Education, Prevention & Policy. doi:10.3109/09687637.2012.713409.
Lo Cascio, V., Guzzo, G., Pace, F., & Pace, U. (2013). Anxiety and self- esteem as mediators of the relation between family communication and indecisiveness in adolescence. International Journal for Educational and Vocational Guidance, 13(2), 135–149. doi:10.1007/s10775-013-9243-1.
Lo Presti, A., & Drammis, L. M. (2012). Un contributo alla validazione italiana del Career Factors Inventory [A contribution to the Italian validation of the career factors inventory]. Counseling – Giornale Italiano di Ricerca e Applicazioni, 2(5), 217–231.
McAdams, D. P., Hart, H. M., & Maruna, S. (1998). The anatomy of generativity. In D. P. McAdams & E. de St. Aubin (Eds.), Generativity and adult development (pp. 7–43). Washington: American Psychological Association.
Milevsky, A., Schlechter, M., Netter, S., & Keehn, D. (2007). Maternal and paternal parenting styles in adolescents: associations with self-esteem, depression and life-satisfaction. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 16, 39–47. doi:10.1007/s10826-006-9066-5.
Myers, R. (1990). Classical and modern regression with applications. Boston: Duxbury.
Nota, L., Ferrari, L., Solberg, V. S. H., & Soresi, S. (2007). Career search self-efficacy, family support, and career indecision with Italian youth. Journal of Career Assessment, 15, 181–193. doi:10.1177/1069072706298019.
Nota, L., Mann, L., Soresi, S., & Friedman, I. (2002). Decisione e Scelte [Decisions and choices]. Firenze: Iter-Organizzazioni Speciali.
Pace, U., Cacioppo, M., & Schimmenti, A. (2012). The moderating role of father’s care on the onset of binge eating symptoms among female late adolescents with insecure attachment. Child Psychiatry and Human Development, 43, 282–292. doi:10.1007/s10578-011-0269-7.
Pace, U., & Zappulla, C. (2009). Identity processes and quality of emotional autonomy: The contribution of two developmental tasks on middle-adolescents’ subjective well-being. Identity: An International Journal of Theory and Research, 9, 323–340.
Patalano, A. L., & LeClair, Z. (2011). The influence of group decision making on indecisiveness-related decisional confidence. Judgment and Decision Making, 6(2), 163–175.
Pérez, J. C., & Cumsille, P. (2012). Adolescent temperament and parental control in the development of the adolescent decision making in a Chilean sample. Journal of Adolescence, 35, 659–669. doi:10.1016/j.adolescence.2011.09.002.
Prezza, M., Trombaccia, F. R., & Armento, L. (1997). La scala dell’autostima di Rosenberg. Traduzione e validazione italiana [The Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale: Italian translation and validation]. Bollettino di Psicologia applicata, 223, 35–44.
Pychyl, T. A., Coplan, R. J., & Reid, P. A. M. (2002). Parenting and procrastination: Gender differences in the relations between procrastination, parenting style and self-worth in early adolescence. Personality and Individual Differences, 33, 271–285.
R Development Core Team (2010). R: A language and environment for statistical computing. Vienna, Austria: the R Foundation for Statistical Computing. Retrieved from: http://www.R-project.org
Rassin, E. (2007). A psychological theory of indecisiveness. Netherlands Journal of Psychology, 63, 1–11. doi:10.1007/BF03061056.
Rassin, E., & Muris, P. (2005). Indecisiveness and the interpretation of ambiguous situations. Personality and Individual Differences, 39, 1285–1291. doi:10.1016/j.paid.2005.06.006.
Rassin, E., Muris, P., Booster, E., & Kolsloot, I. (2008). Indecisiveness and informational tunnel vision. Personality and Individual Differences, 45, 96–102. doi:10.1016/j.paid.2008.03.006.
Reed, G. F. (1985). Obsessional experience and compulsive behaviour: A cognitive-structural approach. Orlando: Academic Press, Inc.
Rosenberg, M. (1965). Society and the adolescent self-image. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
Saka, N., & Gati, I. (2007). Applying decision theory to facilitating adolescent career choices. In V. B. Skorikov & W. Patton (Eds.), Career development in childhood and adolescence (pp. 181–202). Rotterdam: Sense.
Saka, N., Gati, I., & Kelly, K. R. (2008). Emotional and personality-related aspects of career decision-making difficulties. Journal of Career Assessment, 16, 403–424. doi:10.1177/1069072708318900.
Sayil, M., & Kindap, Y. (2010). Ergenin anne-babadan algıladığı psikolojik kontrol: Psikolojik kontrol ölçeğinin geçerlik ve güvenirliği [Perceived parental psychological control in adolescents: Reliability and validity of the psychological control scale]. Türk Psikoloji Yazıları, 13(25), 62–75.
Schafer, J. L. (1997). Analysis of incomplete multivariate data. London, UK: Chapman and Hall.
Schimmenti, A. (2012). Unveiling the hidden self: developmental trauma and pathological shame. Psychodynamic Practice: Individuals, Groups and Organisations, 18(2), 195–211. doi:10.1080/14753634.2012.664873.
Schimmenti, A., Guglielmucci, F., Barbasio, C., & Granieri, A. (2012). Attachment disorganization and dissociation in virtual worlds: A study on problematic internet use among players of online role playing games. Clinical Neuropsychiatry, 9(5), 195–202.
Schimmenti, A., Passanisi, A., Gervasi, A. M., Manzella, S., & Famà, F. I. (2013). Insecure attachment attitudes in the onset of problematic internet use among late adolescents. Child Psychiatry and Human Development. doi:10.1007/s10578-013-0428-0.
Schimmenti, A., Passanisi, A., Pace, U., Manzella, S., Di Carlo, G., & Caretti, V. (2014). The relationship between attachment and psychopathy: a study with a sample of violent offenders. Current Psychology. doi:10.1007/s12144-014-9211-z.
Serling, D. A., & Betz, N. E. (1990). Development and evaluation of a measure of fear of commitment. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 37, 91–97. doi:10.1037/0022-0167.37.1.91.
Shek, D. T. L. (2002). Chinese adolescents’ perceptions of family functioning: Personal, school-related and family correlates. Genetic, Social, and General Psychology Monographs, 128, 358–380.
Silk, J., Morris, A., Kanaya, T., & Steinberg, L. (2003). Psychological control and autonomy granting: Opposite ends of a continuum or distinct constructs? Journal of Research on Adolescence, 13, 113–128.
Soenens, B., & Vansteenkiste, M. (2010). A theoretical upgrade of the concept of parental psychological control: proposing new insights on the basis of self-determination theory. Developmental Review, 30, 74–99. doi:10.1016/j.dr.2009.11.001.
Soenens, B., Luyckx, K., Vansteenkiste, M., Luyten, P., Duriez, B., & Goossens, L. (2008). Maladaptive perfectionism as an intervening variable between psychological control and adolescent depressive symptoms: a three-wave longitudinal study. Journal of Family Psychology, 22(3), 465–474. doi:10.1037/0893-3200.22.3.465.
Soenens, B., Vansteenkiste, M., & Luyten, P. (2010). Toward a domain-specific approach to the study of parental psychological control: distinguishing between dependency-oriented and achievement-oriented psychological control. Journal of Personality, 78, 217–256. doi:10.1111/j.1467-6494.2009.00614.x.
Stolz, H. E., Barber, B. K., & Olsen, J. A. (2005). Toward disentangling fathering and mothering: an assessment of relative importance. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 67, 1076–1092. doi:10.1111/j.1741-3737.2005.00195.x.
Swann, W. B., Stein-Seroussi, A., & Giesler, R. B. (1992). Why people self-verify. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 62, 392–401. doi:10.1037/0022-3514.62.3.392.
Thompson, L., & Walker, A. (1989). Gender in families: Women and men in marriage, work, and parenthood. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 51, 845–871.
Veneziano, R. A. (2003). The importance of parental warmth. Cross-Cultural Research, 37, 265–281. doi:10.1177/1069397103253710.
Vondracek, F. W., Hostetler, M., Schulenberg, J. E., & Shimizu, K. (1990). Dimensions of career indecision. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 37, 98–106. doi:10.1037/0022-0167.37.1.98.
Young, R. A., Marshall, S., Domene, J. F., Arato-Bolivar, J., Hayoun, R., Marshall, E., & Valach, L. (2006). Relationships, communication, and career in the parent-adolescent projects of families with and without challenges. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 68(1), 1–23. doi:10.1016/j.jvb.2005.05.001.
Zappulla, C., Pace, U., Lo Cascio, V., Guzzo, G., & Huebner, S. (2014). Factor structure and convergent validity of the long and abbreviated versions of the multidimensional students’ life satisfaction scale in an Italian sample. Social Indicators Research, 118, 57–69. doi:10.1007/s11205-013-0418-4.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding authors
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Lo Cascio, V., Guzzo, G., Pace, F. et al. The Relationship among Paternal and Maternal Psychological Control, Self-Esteem, and Indecisiveness across Adolescent Genders. Curr Psychol 35, 467–477 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-015-9315-0
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-015-9315-0