The important role of parenting is widely acknowledged, but as most studies have understood and examined it as a stable attribute (e.g., parenting style), the stability of and changes in parenting are less well understood. Using longitudinal person-oriented approaches (i.e., latent profile analyses and latent transition analyses), this study aimed to examine the stability of and changes in autonomy-related parenting profiles and their effects on adolescents’ academic and psychological development. Four autonomy-related dimensions (i.e., autonomy support, warmth, psychological control, conditional regard) were chosen to identify parenting profiles on the basis of Self-Determination Theory. Using five-year longitudinal data from 789 German secondary school students (50.06% female, Mage at T1 = 10.82 years, age span = 10–17), four autonomy-related parenting profiles were found: Supportive (~17%), Controlling (~31%), Unsupportive-Uncontrolling (~17%), and Limited Supportive (~35%). The results suggest that the Supportive profile contributes to adolescents’ positive academic and psychological development, whereas the Controlling profile, which thwarts autonomy development, exacerbates the development of psychopathology, and impairs academic achievement. More importantly, the Limited Supportive profile is as maladaptive as the Unsupportive-Uncontrolling profile. Regarding parenting profiles’ stability and changes, the results showed that about half of each profile stayed in the same group. Overall, it could be observed that parents became more supportive and less controlling over time. However, the findings also indicate that parenting profiles are less stable than expected and can still change during early-to-mid adolescence.

Background The relation between parental involvement and student achievement has been of research interest for many decades. Although the idea of reciprocal processes between parent and child was proposed 40 years ago, very few efforts have been made to investigate reciprocal relations between parental involvement and student achievement. Aims Using self‐determination theory, this study investigated the longitudinal associations of the manner of parental involvement (i.e., autonomy‐supportive or controlling) in children's academic problems with children's academic achievement. This study further addressed the recently intensely debated methodological issue of examining reciprocal relations by comparing a random‐intercept cross‐lagged panel model (RI‐CLPM) with the traditional cross‐lagged panel model (CLPM). Sample and Methods A RI‐CLPM and a traditional CLPM were applied to 5‐year longitudinal data including 1465 secondary school students (Mage at T1 = 10.82 years, SD = 0.62). In both models, we controlled for students' gender, school type, socioeconomic status and cognitive ability. Results The results show that the RI‐CLPM fitted the data better than the CLPM. Trait‐like stability was found for both forms of parental involvement and academic achievement. At the between‐person level, controlling involvement related to lower achievement, whereas no correlation between autonomy‐supportive involvement and achievement was found. At the within‐person level, there were positive reciprocal relations between autonomy‐supportive involvement and achievement, whereas controlling involvement was not associated with achievement. Conclusions This study contributes substantially to the understanding of the relations between parental involvement in children's academic problems and children's academic achievement by simultaneously taking between‐person differences and within‐person processes into consideration.

Zusammenfassung. Da familiäre Diskurspraktiken für die Entwicklung kindlicher Argumentationskompetenz wichtig sind, wurde das Training „Eltern fördern durch Argumentieren (EfA)“ für Eltern mit Kindern Anfang der Sekundarstufe I entwickelt. Kernziele sind, das Bewusstsein für die Rolle informeller Sprachförderpotentiale der Familie zu stärken und Strategien zum Umgang mit Konflikten zu vermitteln. Zur Evaluation von EfA wurde eine quasi-experimentelle-Feldstudie mit Prä-Post-Follow-Up-Design und unbehandelter Vergleichsgruppe realisiert. Von 37 teilnehmenden Eltern wurden 17 in sieben, wöchentlich stattfindenden Sitzungen trainiert. Die Befunde zur Akzeptanz des Trainings und nachhaltigen Umsetzung der vermitteln Strategien sind positiv. Auch zeigen sich erwartungsgemäß Veränderungen in der Interventionsgruppe: die Sensibilität trainierter Eltern für ihre unterstützende Rolle und die Bedeutung des sprachlichen Anregungsgehalts stieg stärker, sie zeigten einen deutlichen Zuwachs erwerbsförderlicher Diskurspraktiken, berichteten einen stärkeren Rückgang familialer Konfliktgespräche und neigten weniger zu unterdrückend-bestrafenden Reaktionen auf kindliche Wut. Die ermittelten Effektstärken lassen es sinnvoll erscheinen, das Training für die Nutzung in der Praxis aufzubereiten.