Pancultural Gender Differences in the Relation Between Perceived Parental Acceptance and Psychological Adjustment of Children and Adult Offspring

Abstract

This cross-cultural meta-analysis is based on 220 studies involving 33,081 respondents from 23 nations across five continents. The study addressed a major question drawn from the basic postulates of interpersonal acceptance–rejection theory (IPARTheory): Is the psychological adjustment of both males and females universally (i.e., panculturally) associated with children’s and adults’ perceptions of both maternal and paternal acceptance in childhood? To remain true to the major postulates of IPARTheory (formerly known as parental acceptance–rejection theory, PARTheory), all studies included in this meta-analysis used the Parental Acceptance–Rejection Questionnaire for Mothers and Fathers (Child and Adult PARQ: Mother and Father versions), as well as the Personality Assessment Questionnaire (Child and Adult versions). Results showed that both paternal and maternal acceptance correlate significantly with the psychological adjustment of both children and adults across all cultures. The study also showed that there are no gender differences in the relation between children’s perception of parental acceptance and their psychological adjustment. However, remembrances of maternal acceptance in childhood showed significantly stronger relations with adult sons’ current psychological adjustment than that of adult daughters. Moreover, remembrances of paternal acceptance in childhood were found to have significantly stronger relations with adult daughters’ psychological adjustment than did daughters’ remembrances of maternal acceptance.