Beliefs about parental authority, parenting styles, and parent-adolescent conflict among Iranian mothers of middle adolescents

Abstract

Associations among parenting styles, parental authority beliefs, and adolescent—parent conflict were examined in 426 mothers of middle adolescents from 3 cities in Iran. Consistent with past research, mothers judged parental authority as less legitimate for personal than for conventional or prudential issues. Poorer, less educated mothers were more authoritarian in their parenting, and more authoritarian and less authoritative parenting and poorer maternal mental health were uniquely associated with more frequent and more intense conflicts. Conflicts were more frequent among mothers who evaluated parental authority as less legitimate for prudential issues and more legitimate for personal issues, particularly among mothers of boys. Despite broad variation in mothers’ education and social class, conflicts reflected concerns about drawing boundaries between mothers’ legitimate authority and adolescents’ personal jurisdiction.

Iraqi, Syrian, and Palestinian Refugee Adolescents' Beliefs About Parental Authority Legitimacy and Its Correlates

“…First, the description of Arab parents as authoritarian and controlling (Al-Simadi & Atoum, 2000;Dwairy et al, 2006) raises questions about whether Arab youth believe that parents should have legitimate authority over all areas of their lives or whether their evaluations differ by domain. Consistent with studies in different regions of the world and with Iranian mothers (Assadi et al, 2011), we expected that youth in all three groups would evaluate parents as having more legitimate authority to regulate moral, conventional, and prudential than personal issues. Using culturally appropriate items, we expected that all youth would make similar distinctions, but that, based on past studies (Assadi et al, 2011;Hasebe et al, 2004), some of the issues treated as multifaceted in the United States (particularly regarding friends) may be seen as prudential or even conventional (e.g., reflecting cultural norms about loyalty to family) among Arab refugees.…”

“…Consistent with studies in different regions of the world and with Iranian mothers (Assadi et al, 2011), we expected that youth in all three groups would evaluate parents as having more legitimate authority to regulate moral, conventional, and prudential than personal issues. Using culturally appropriate items, we expected that all youth would make similar distinctions, but that, based on past studies (Assadi et al, 2011;Hasebe et al, 2004), some of the issues treated as multifaceted in the United States (particularly regarding friends) may be seen as prudential or even conventional (e.g., reflecting cultural norms about loyalty to family) among Arab refugees. Furthermore, as past research has shown that parental legitimacy beliefs do not differ significantly for moral and conventional issues (Smetana et al, 2005), we hypothesized that they would be treated as a single latent factor here.…”

“…Furthermore, Iranian mothers of 14-year-olds, varying widely in literacy, modernity, and SES, were found to have domain-differentiated beliefs (Assadi, Smetana, Shahmansouri, & Mohammadi, 2011). Regardless of background, mothers evaluated parents as having more authority over conventional than prudential and personal issues and the least authority over personal issues.…”

Video observations of maternal sensitivity in urban and rural Iran

“…We discuss the available studies that may at least serve to characterize common parenting practices in Iran. One such study among urban mothers of middle adolescents suggests the authoritarian parenting style to be normative, especially among poorer and less educated mothers (Assadi, Smetana, Shahmansouri, & Mohammadi, 2011). Similarly, corporal punishment is still widely used and endorsed by Iranian parents, and verbal abuse is common (Oveisi et al, 2010).…”

A qualitative study into parental mediation of adolescents' internet use

“…Research suggests that conflicts over parental authority between a parent and child typically occur with regard to issues that cover multiple domains (Assadi et al, 2011). Likewise, parents themselves may find it more difficult to define their own role when it comes to overlapping issues.…”