Parental Psychological Control and Academic Engagement: A Vicious Cycle Moderated by Teacher Autonomy Support.

Authors

Xiaochen Chen, Jiayi Hou

Published in

Journal of adolescence. Jul 06, 2026. Epub Jul 06, 2026.

Abstract

Parental psychological control has been linked to poor adolescent academic outcomes, yet little is known about how adolescents' academic engagement may influence parenting or the role of school factors in these dynamics. This study examined the reciprocal relationship between parental psychological control and adolescents' academic engagement and explored the moderating role of perceived teacher autonomy support.
A three-wave longitudinal study was conducted with 582 adolescents from one public middle school in southern China (M_{age T1} = 13.01 years, SD = 0.32; 47.42% female). Data were collected in December 2023 (T1), June 2024 (T2), and December 2024 (T3) through surveys administered to students. Parental psychological control, academic engagement, and teacher autonomy support were assessed using established scales. Cross-lagged panel analyses, including both traditional and random-intercept models, were used to test the bidirectional associations between parental psychological control and academic engagement, and to examine the moderating role of teacher autonomy support.
The analyses revealed a significant bidirectional relationship: higher parental psychological control predicted lower academic engagement over time, and lower academic engagement predicted increased parental psychological control. Teacher autonomy support moderated this cycle, with higher autonomy support buffering the negative effect of parental psychological control on subsequent academic engagement.
The results suggest that parental psychological control and academic engagement form a reciprocal cycle that is mitigated by teacher autonomy support. The results underscore the need to consider multiple ecological systems when addressing adolescents' academic adjustment and suggest that autonomy-supportive teaching practices can help mitigate risks stemming from less optimal parenting.

PMID:
42410998
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 07 Jul 2026.

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