Parenting in Emerging Adulthood: An Examination of Parenting Clusters and Correlates

• NCJ Number: 235337
• Journal: Journal of Youth and Adolescence Volume: 40 Issue: 6 Dated: June 2011 Pages: 730-743
• Author(s): Larry J. Nelson; Laura M. Padilla-Walker; Katherine J. Christensen; Cortney A. Evans; Jason S. Carroll
• Date Published: June 2011
• Length: 14 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This article examines parenting in emerging adulthood.

Abstract

The changing nature of the transition to adulthood in Western societies, such as the United States, may be extending the length of time parents are engaged in "parenting" activities. However, little is known about different approaches parents take in their interactions with their emerging-adult children. Hence, this study attempted to identify different clusters of parents based on the extent to which they exhibited both extremes of control (psychological control, punishment, verbal hostility, indulgence) and responsiveness (knowledge, warmth, induction, autonomy granting), and to examine how combinations of parenting were related to emerging adult children's relational and individual outcomes (e.g. parent-child relationship quality, drinking, self-worth, depression). The data were collected from 403 emerging adults (M age = 19.89, SD = 1.78, range = 18-26, 62 percent female) and at least 1 of their parents (287 fathers and 317 mothers). Eighty-four percent of participants reported being European-American, 6 percent Asian-American, 4 percent African-American, 3 percent Latino, and 4 percent reported being of other ethnicities. Data were analyzed using hierarchical cluster analysis, separately for mothers and fathers, and identified three similar clusters of parents which were labeled as uninvolved (low on all aspects of parenting), controlling-indulgent (high on both extremes of control and low on all aspects of responsiveness), and authoritative (high on responsiveness and low on control). A fourth cluster was identified for both mothers and fathers and was labeled as inconsistent for mothers (mothers were above the mean on both extremes of control and on responsiveness) and average for fathers (fathers were at the mean on all eight aspects of parenting). The discussion focuses on how each of these clusters effectively distinguished between child outcomes. (Published Abstract)