Abstract
Building on self-determination theory (Deci and Ryan in Psychological Inquiry, 11, 227-268. doi:10.1207/S15327965PLI1104_01, 2000), the aim of the current study was to examine the role of maternal affective and cognitive empathy in predicting adolescents’ depressive symptoms, through mothers’ psychological control use. Less empathic mothers may be less sensitive to adolescents’ need for psychological autonomy, and thus prone to violating this need using psychological control, which may in turn predict adolescents’ depressive symptoms. Moreover, according to interpersonal theory of depression (Coyne in Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 85, 186–193. doi:10.1037/0021-843x.85.2.186, 1976), adolescents’ depressive symptoms may elicit rejecting responses, such as mothers’ psychological control. For six waves, 497 adolescents (57 % boys, Mage T1 = 13.03) annually completed questionnaires on depressive symptoms and maternal psychological control, while mothers reported on their empathy. Cross-lagged path analyses showed that throughout adolescence, both mothers’ affective and cognitive empathy indirectly predicted boys’ and girls’ depressive symptoms, through psychological control. Additionally, depressive symptoms predicted psychological control for boys, and early adolescent girls. These results highlight the importance of (1) mothers’ affective and cognitive empathy in predicting adolescents’ depressive symptoms, and (2) taking gender into account when examining adolescent-effects.
Highlights
In adolescence, the prevalence of depression increases in boys and girls (e.g., Lewinsohn et al 1998; Oliva et al 2014)
If adolescents experience a violation of their need for increasing autonomy, they may turn inward or withdraw, as they learn that expression of psychological autonomy is not accepted (Barber et al 1994)
There is a gap in previous research examining the association between empathy and psychological control, empathy has been found to be related to negative parenting behaviors, with mothers with less empathy being at risk for physical and emotional child abuse (e.g., Rodriguez 2013; Wiehe 2003) which in turn predicted negative child outcomes (Trentacosta and Shaw 2008)
Summary
The prevalence of depression increases in boys and girls (e.g., Lewinsohn et al 1998; Oliva et al 2014). Given the expectation that maternal psychological control predicts adolescents’ depressive symptoms throughout adolescence, it is important to examine factors that may precede mothers’ use of psychological control. This is supported by the finding that mothers high in perspective taking promoted adolescents’ psychological autonomy more (Gondoli and Silverberg 1997) Both maternal empathic concern and perspective taking are likely to facilitate sensitive responses appropriate to the child’s cues (Davis 1983; Kochanska et al 2004). This study will explore both mothers’ empathic concern and perspective taking tendencies separately in relation to mothers’ psychological control
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