Too much of a good thing? Linking overparenting and Chinese young children’s social preference

ABSTRACT

Overparenting is an emerging topic in parenting research and has gained increasing attention in media. Most studies have focused on adolescents and young adults in Western countries, while it remains unclear whether overparenting is related to young children’s outcomes in non-Western contexts. The present study aimed to examine the mechanism by which overparenting was associated with Chinese young children’s social preference. The study surveyed 283 Chinese parents of children aged 36–83 months (mean age = 58.61) to examine parenting practices and child social preference. The results suggested that parents’ psychological control and parent–child relationship had serial mediating effects on the relationship between overparenting and young children’s social preference in terms of shyness and unsociability. The present study further raised the importance of parenting during early childhood and generated practical implications for parents in China and beyond, encouraging parents to reflect on how their beliefs and practices may influence child outcomes from the early years.

KEYWORDS:

• Overparenting
• psychological control
• parent–child relationship
• social preference

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This study was funded by the International Joint Research Project of Huiyan International College, Faculty of Education, Beijing Normal University (Approval No. ICER202202).

Notes on contributors

Heyi Zhang

Heyi Zhang is a lecturer at the Institute (Department) of Early Childhood Education, Faculty of Education, Beijing Normal University. She obtained her MPhil in Psychology and PhD in Education from the University of Cambridge. Her research interests are mainly concerned with children's cognitive development, social and emotional development, the role of parents and teachers in supporting child development, etc.

Xueli Yin

Xueli Yin holds a bachelor's degree in education from Beijing Normal University and an MPhil in Education from the University of Cambridge. Her research interests lie in children's emotional development and children's interaction with visual text.

Xiao Yu

Xiao Yu is a lecturer at the Department of Psychology, School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Beijing Forestry University. She obtained her PhD from Beijing Normal University. Her research interests are primarily concerned with children's cognitive development and academic achievement.

Winnie Sin Wai Pui

Winnie Sin Wai Pui is a lecturer in Education, Faculty of Education, University of Northampton. She earned both her Master's and Doctoral degrees from the University of Cambridge, specialising in the design of merged education and special education curricula, the effects of student self-regulation on studying, and qualitative research methodology in education.

Yinghe Chen

Yinghe Chen is a professor in Psychology, working at the Institute of Developmental Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, Beijing Normal University. Her research interests focus on children's cognitive abilities, such as mathematical cognition, executive function, working memory, representation, concept learning, reasoning, etc.