Is the Way I was Raised Linked to How I Love? Perceived Parenting and Implicit Theories of Relationships

Abstract

The current study was aimed at exploring (a) the links between perceived parenting styles (i.e., authoritarian parenting and authoritative parenting) and implicit theories of relationships (i.e., destiny belief and growth belief) and (b) the potential differences in such links based on romantic relationship status among emerging adults. A total of 578 participants aged 18–25 from Taiwan were included in the present study. By utilizing structural equation modeling (SEM), results indicated that perceived authoritative parenting linked to growth beliefs about romantic relationships, whereas perceived authoritarian parenting linked to both growth and destiny beliefs about romantic relationships. Additionally, according to the multigroup analysis of SEM, we found the associations between perceived parenting and implicit theories of relationships significantly varied by romantic relationship status. This study identified the critical relation between perceived parenting and youths’ romantic relationship beliefs and further revealed how these relations varied across young people with different relationship statuses.