College
College of Arts and Sciences
Mentor Information
Wendy M. Rote
Description
Parental feedback and direction are often interpreted as controlling; however, developmental theory suggests these behaviors may function as autonomy support when they are responsive to youths’ need. Drawing on self-determination theory, autonomy supportive parenting involves the promotion of volitional functioning through behaviors that align with youths’ perspectives and fosters independent problem-making and a sense of choice (McCurdy et al., 2020; Zhang & Whitebread, 2021). Similarly, scaffolding frameworks emphasize that provisions of parental support (e.g., feedback, direction, and emotional encouragement) contingent on the child’s task performance can promote higher levels of independent functioning (Mermelshtine, 2017; Salonen et al., 2007). The present study examined whether increases in maternal feedback and direction across a 5-minute tangram task reflected perceptions of autonomy-support in youths. Participants were 24 mother– child dyads. Youth participants were aged 12-20 years old (M = 15.96, SD = 2.48) and were primarily female (66.67%). Provisions of maternal feedback/direction during the task were coded based on a coding scheme created for the study. Frequency of provisions of parental support in the first third portion of the task were then compared to the frequency of provisions in the final third portion of the task. A paired-samples t-test assessed changes over time, and associations between change scores and adolescent-reported autonomy support were explored. Maternal feedback/direction was expected to increase over time and relate positively to perceived autonomy support, reflecting contingent scaffolding rather than control. This would suggest that parental direction can be adaptive when responsive to youths’ needs.
Maternal Feedback Over Time: Associations with Youth Perceptions of Autonomy Support
Parental feedback and direction are often interpreted as controlling; however, developmental theory suggests these behaviors may function as autonomy support when they are responsive to youths’ need. Drawing on self-determination theory, autonomy supportive parenting involves the promotion of volitional functioning through behaviors that align with youths’ perspectives and fosters independent problem-making and a sense of choice (McCurdy et al., 2020; Zhang & Whitebread, 2021). Similarly, scaffolding frameworks emphasize that provisions of parental support (e.g., feedback, direction, and emotional encouragement) contingent on the child’s task performance can promote higher levels of independent functioning (Mermelshtine, 2017; Salonen et al., 2007). The present study examined whether increases in maternal feedback and direction across a 5-minute tangram task reflected perceptions of autonomy-support in youths. Participants were 24 mother– child dyads. Youth participants were aged 12-20 years old (M = 15.96, SD = 2.48) and were primarily female (66.67%). Provisions of maternal feedback/direction during the task were coded based on a coding scheme created for the study. Frequency of provisions of parental support in the first third portion of the task were then compared to the frequency of provisions in the final third portion of the task. A paired-samples t-test assessed changes over time, and associations between change scores and adolescent-reported autonomy support were explored. Maternal feedback/direction was expected to increase over time and relate positively to perceived autonomy support, reflecting contingent scaffolding rather than control. This would suggest that parental direction can be adaptive when responsive to youths’ needs.
