Parenting Style Profiles in Chinese Early Adolescents: Stability, Transitions, and Associations With Internalizing...

The role of parenting styles during early adolescence has always been a subject of significant concern. However, previous studies have predominantly treated parenting styles as a static construct, leading to a limited understanding of their dynamic patterns. This study employed a longitudinal person-centered perspective to examine the stability of and transitions in parenting style profiles during this critical period, as well as their associations with adolescents' internalizing and externalizing problem behaviors.

Data were obtained in November 2023 (T1) and November 2024 (T2) from 893 Chinese students (53.5% female; M_age at T1 = 12.86 years) during their transition from the seventh to eighth grade. Data analyses employed latent profile analysis (LPA) and latent transition analysis (LTA). Differences in levels of internalizing and externalizing problems across the identified profile trajectories were subsequently examined.

The analysis identified three distinct parenting profiles: harsh, supportive, and low-involved. Each profile demonstrated a high degree of stability over time, although some meaningful transitions were observed. Adolescents who consistently experienced supportive parenting or transitions toward the supportive profile generally reported lower levels of internalizing and externalizing problems. Conversely, those exposed to stable harsh parenting or a shift toward the harsh profile showed higher levels of these problems. Furthermore, internalizing problems appeared to be more susceptible to changes in parenting profiles than externalizing problems.

The findings underscore the potential for positive shifts in parenting styles to serve as protective factors against problem behaviors in early adolescence, offering valuable implications for prevention and intervention strategies.