Analysis of the Relationship Between Child Temperament and Parenting Styles
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15291/ai.5045Keywords:
child temperament, developmental period, parents, parenting styles, preschool childrenAbstract
A child’s temperament reflects stable individual differences in the quality and intensity of emotional reactions, activity level, attention, and emotion regulation. Parenting styles represent a pattern of behavior that includes parental values, attitudes toward the child, and the emotional climate in which parents act. Parenting styles differ along two main dimensions: warmth and control. By combining these dimensions, four general parenting styles have been defined, each influencing the quality of a child’s upbringing and expected developmental outcomes in different ways. The child’s temperament, in interaction with the parental style, forms the foundation for development across all domains. This study explores the relationship between child temperament and parenting styles. Through the analysis of parenting approaches and characteristics of child temperament, the research provides insight into the complex interactions that shape a child’s development. The research was conducted using an online questionnaire. 104 parents participated. The first part of the questionnaire contained general socio-demographic questions about the respondents. The second part included 30 statements assessing parenting styles, while the third part contained a shortened and adapted version of the CBQ-SF questionnaire used to measure child temperament. The results show that the more parents prefer a permissive style, the lower their level of control. Positive correlations were found between authoritarian and permissive, as well as between authoritarian and authoritative parenting styles. Based on the correlational design and statistical methods, no significant differences were found between boys and girls in any dimension of temperament, nor in the parenting styles preferred by their parents.
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