Parent−child relationship and social competence in Chinese preschoolers: A latent class analysis

Abstract

As one of the earliest and most salient relationships, the parent–child relationship during a child’s early years forms a foundation for subsequent interpersonal interactions and has a direct impact on child developmental outcomes. Using a sample of 4,938 Chinese preschoolers and their parents, we employed a person-centered approach to explore how the parents were grouped into classes based on their perceived levels of closeness and conflict in the parent–child relationship. Four distinct relationship types were identified using latent class analysis: harmonious (45.14%), conflictual (26.75%), ambivalent (24.36%), and detached (3.75%), representing different combinations of relational closeness and conflict in the home setting. Family socioeconomic status and child gender were found to be significant predictors of the types of parent–child relationship. The results also indicated that children in the harmonious relationship group exhibited significantly higher levels of social competence compared to children in the other parent–child relationship groups. The findings of this study underscore the concurrence of relational closeness and conflict, and shed light on the need for providing tailored family support strategies and programs.