Using random intercept cross-lagged panel analysis, this study examined the longitudinal relations of mathematics anxiety to maternal achievement-oriented psychological control and academic contingent self-esteem in 336 Chinese adolescents from the age of 13 to 17. Results showed that, at the between-person level, adolescents who perceived their mothers as more psychologically controlling in achievement domains over time were also the ones with higher levels of academic contingent self-esteem and mathematics anxiety, compared with other adolescents. Our within-person analyses are in line with the within-person hypotheses that underline self-determination theory: adolescents’ perceptions of maternal achievement-oriented psychological control were linked to mathematics anxiety through academic contingent self-esteem. We also found that the association between maternal achievement-oriented psychological control and mathematics anxiety was bidirectional, which supports the transactional perspective of parental influence. This study contributes to the literature by elucidating potential processes and reciprocal associations involved in parental psychological control, academic contingent self-esteem, and mathematics anxiety.
AssorA.RothG.DeciE. L. (2004). The emotional costs of parents’ conditional regard: A self-determination theory analysis. Journal of Personality, 72, 47–88.
2.
BaoX. H.LamS. F. (2008). Who makes the choice? Rethinking the role of autonomy and relatedness in Chinese children’s motivation. Child Development, 79, 269–283.
BarberB. K.HarmonE. L. (2002). Violating the self: Parental psychological control of children and adolescents. In Bar- berB. K. (Ed.), Intrusive parenting (pp. 15–52). American Psychological Association.
5.
BarberB.StolzH.OlsenJ.CollinsW. A.BurchinalM. (2005). Parental support, psychological control, and behavioral control: Assessing relevance across time, culture, method. Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development, 70(4), 1–147.
6.
BaronP.MacGillivrayR. (1989). Depressive symptoms in adolescents as a function of perceived parental behavior. Journal of Adolescent Research, 4, 50–62.
7.
BeilockS. L.CarrT. H. (2005). When high-powered people fail: Working memory and “choking under pressure” in math. Psychological Science, 16, 101–105. https://doi.org/101111/j.0956-7976.2005.00789.x
8.
BerryD.WilloughbyM. T. (2016). On the practical interpretability of cross-lagged panel models: Rethinking a developmental workhorse. Child Development, 88, 1186–1206. https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.12660
9.
BrehmS. S.BrehmJ. W. (1981). Psychological reactance: A theory of freedom and control. Academic Press.
10.
BurhansK. K.DweckC. S. (1995). Helplessness in early childhood: The role of contingent worth. Child Development, 66, 1719–1738.
11.
BurwellR. A.ShirkS. R. (2006). Self-processes in adolescent depression: The role of self-worth contingencies. Journal of Research in Adolescence, 16, 479–490. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1532-7795.2006.00503.x
12.
CaiJ.LinF. L.FanL. (2004). How do Chinese learn mathematics? Some evidence-based insights and needed directions. In FanL. H.WongN. Y.CaiJ.LiS. (Eds.), How Chinese learn mathematics: Perspectives from insiders (pp. 535–554). World Scientific.
ChaoR. K. (1996). Chinese and European American mothers’ beliefs about the role of parenting in children’s school success. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 27(4), 403–423. https://doi.org/101177/0022022196274002
15.
ChenH.LanW. (1998). Adolescents’ perceptions of their parents’ academic expectations: Comparison of American, Chinese–American, and Chinese high school students. Adolescence, 33(130), 385–390.
16.
ChenJ.WuP.LiuH. (2014). The relationship between the academic achievement, the self–perceived academic ability and academic emotions of junior middle school students in mathematics [in Chinese]. Journal of Psychological Science, 37(2), 368–372.
17.
CheungC. S. S.PomerantzE. M. (2011). Parents’ involvement in children’s learning in the United States and China: Implications for children’s academic and emotional adjustment. Child Development, 82, 932–950. https://doi.org/101111/j.1467-8624.2011.01582.x
18.
ChiJ.RaoN. (2003). Parental beliefs about school learning and children’s educational attainment: Evidence from rural China. Ethos, 31, 330–356. https://doi.org/101525/eth.2003.31.3.330
19.
ChingB. H.-H. (2017). Mathematics anxiety and working memory: Longitudinal associations with mathematical performance in Chinese children. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 51, 99–113. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cedpsych.2017.06.006
20.
ChingB. H.-H.KongK. H.WuH. X.ChenT. T. (2020). Examining the reciprocal relations of mathematics anxiety to quantitative reasoning and number knowledge in Chinese children. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 63. https://doi.org/101016/j.cedpsych.2020.101919
21.
ChingB. H.-H.WuH. X.ChenT. T. (2021). Body weight contingent self-worth predicts depression in adolescent girls: The roles of self-esteem instability and interpersonal sexual objectification. Body Image, 36, 74–83. https://doi.org/101016/j.bodyim.2020.10.009
CrockerJ.LuhtanenR. K.CooperM. L.BouvretteS. (2003). Contingencies of self-worth in college students: Theory and measurement. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 85, 894–908. https://doi.org/101037/0022-3514.85.5.894
DarlingN.SteinbergL. (1993). Parenting style as context: An integrative model. Psychological Bulletin, 113, 487–496.
27.
de los ReyesA.KazdinA. E. (2005). Informant discrepancies in the assessment of childhood psychopathology: A critical review, theoretical framework, and recommendations for further study. Psychological Bulletin, 131, 483–509. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.131.4.483
28.
DeciE. L.RyanR. M. (1995). Human autonomy: The basis for true self-esteem. In KernisM. H. (Ed.), Efficacy, agency, and self-esteem (pp. 31–49). Plenum.
29.
DeneaultA.GareauA.BureauJ.GaudreauP.LafontaineM. (2020). Fear of failure mediates the relation between parental psychological control and academic outcomes: A latent mediated-moderation model of parents’ and children’s genders. Journal of Youth and Adolescence. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-020-01209-x
30.
DobkinP. L.TremblayR. E.SacchitelleC. (1997). Predicting boys’ early-onset substance abuse from father’s alcoholism, son’s disruptiveness, and mother’s parenting behavior. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 65(1), 86–92. https://doi.org/101037/0022-006X.65.1.86
31.
DongY.YuG. (2007). The development and application of an academic emotions questionnaire [in Chinese]. Acta Psychologica Sinica, 39(5), 852–860.
32.
DowkerA.SarkarA.LooiC. Y. (2016). Mathematics anxiety: What have we learned in 60 years?Frontiers in Psychology, 7, 1–16. https://doi.org/103389/fpsyg.2016.00508
33.
DrakeK. L.GinsburgG. S. (2012). Family factors in the development, treatment, and prevention of childhood anxiety disorders. Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review, 15, 144–162. https://doi.org/101007/s10567-011-0109-0
34.
EdwardsS. L.RapeeR. M.KennedyS. (2010). Predictors of anxiety symptoms in pre-school aged children: examination of maternal and paternal perspectives. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 51, 313–321. https://doi.org/101111/j.1469-7610.2009.02160
35.
FrenzelA. C.ThrashT. M.PekrunR.GoetzT. (2007). Achievement emotions in Germany and China. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 38(3), 302–309.
36.
GargurevichR.SoenensB. (2016). Psychologically controlling parenting and personality vulnerability to depression: A study in Peruvian late adolescents. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 25(3), 911–921. https://doi.org/101007/s10826-015-0265-9
37.
HamakerE. L.KuiperR. M.GrasmanR. P. P. P. (2015). A critique of the cross-lagged panel model. Psychological Methods, 20, 102–116. https://doi.org/101037/a0038889
38.
HopkoD. R.MahadevanR.BareR. L.HuntM. K. (2003). The abbreviated math anxiety scale (AMAS): Construction, validity, and reliability. Assessment, 10, 178–182. https://doi.org/101177/1073191103010002008
39.
IyengarS. S.LepperM. R. (1999). Rethinking the value of choice: A cultural perspective on intrinsic motivation. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 76, 349–366.
40.
KernisM. H.BrownA. C.BrodyG. H. (2000). Fragile self-esteem in children and its associations with perceived patterns of parent-child communication. Journal of Personality, 68, 225–242. https://doi.org/101111/1467-6494.00096
41.
KerrM.StattinH.OzdemirM. (2012). Perceived parenting style and adolescent adjustment: Revisiting directions of effects and the role of parental knowledge. Developmental Psychology, 48, 1540–1553. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0027720
42.
KirkpatrickR.ZangY. (2011). The negative influences of exam-oriented education on Chinese high school students: Backwash from classroom to child. Language testing in Asia, 1, 36–45. https://doi.org/101186/2229-0443-1-3-36
43.
LanT. (2018). Exploring math education in China and Ontario. Major Paper, 47. https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/major-papers/47
44.
LawrenceJ. S.CharbonneauJ. (2009). The link between basing self-worth on academics and student performance depends on domain identification and academic setting. Learning and Individual Differences, 19(4), 615–620.
45.
LawrenceJ. S.CrockerJ. (2009). Academic contingencies of self-worth impair positively- and negatively-stereotyped students’ performance in performance-goal settings. Journal of Research in Personality, 43, 868–874.
46.
LawrenceJ. S.WilliamsA. (2013). Anxiety explains why people with domain-contingent self-worth underperform on ability-diagnostic tests. Journal of Research in Personality, 47, 227–232. https://doi.org/101016/j.jrp.2013.01.004
47.
LeeJ. (2009). Universals and specifics of math self-concept, math self-efficacy, and math anxiety across 41 PISA 2003 participating countries. Learning and Individual Differences, 19(3), 355–365.
48.
LiJ.FungH.BakemanR.RaeK.WeiW. (2014). How European American and Taiwanese mothers talk to their children about learning. Child Development, 85, 1206– 1221. https://doi.org/101111/cdev.12172
49.
LiJ.HollowayS. D.BempechatJ.LohE. (2008). Building and using a social network: Nurture for low-income Chinese American adolescents’ learning. New Directions for Child and Adolescent Development, 9–25. https://doi.org/101002/cd.220
50.
LittleR. J. A. (1988). A test of missing completely at random for multivariate data with missing values. Journal of the American Statistical Association, 83, 1198–1202. https://doi.org/10.2307/2290157
51.
MantzouranisG.ZimmermannG.Biermann MahaimE.FavezN. (2012). A further examination of the distinction between dependency-oriented and achievement-oriented parental psychological control: Psychometric properties of the DAPCS with French-speaking late adolescents. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 21, 726–733. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-011-9525-5
52.
MarkusH. R.KitayamaS. K. (2003). Models of agency: Sociocultural diversity in the construction of action. In Murphy-BermanV.BermanJ. J. (Eds.), Nebraska Symposium on Motivation: Vol. 49. Cross- cultural differences in perspectives on the self (pp. 1–57). University of Nebraska Press.
53.
MoronyS.KleitmanS.LeeY. P.StankovL. (2013). Predicting achievement: Confidence vs self-efficacy, anxiety, and self-concept in Confucian and European countries. International Journal of Educational Research, 58(Supplement C), 79–96.
54.
NgF. F.PomerantzE. M.LamS. F. (2007). European American and Chinese parents’ responses to children’s success and failure: Implications for children’s responses. Developmental Psychology, 43, 1239–1255. https://doi.org/101037/0012-1649.43.5.1239
55.
NgF. F.WeiJ. (2020). Delving into the minds of Chinese parents: What beliefs motivate their learning-related practices?Child Development Perspectives, 14, 61–67. https://doi.org/101111/cdep.12358
56.
NgS. S. H.RaoN. (2010). Chinese number words, culture, and mathematics learning. Review of Educational Research, 80, 180–206. https://doi.org/103102/0034654310364764
57.
NiiyaY.CrockerJ.BartmessE. N. (2004). From vulnerability to resilience. Learning orientations buffer contingent self-esteem from failure. Psychological Science, 15, 801–805.
58.
OlsenS. F.YangC.HartC. H.RobinsonC. C.WuP.NelsonD. A.NelsonL. J.JinS.WoJ. (2002). Maternal psychological control and preschool children’s behavioral outcomes in China, Russia, and the United States. In BarberB. K.BarberB. K. (Eds.). Intrusive parenting: How psychological control affects children and adolescents (pp. 235–262). American Psychological Association. https://doi.org/101037/10422-008
59.
PerssonS.StattinH.KerrM. (2004). Adolescents’ conceptions of family democracy: Does their own behaviour play a role?European Journal of Developmental Psychology, 1, 317–330. https://doi.org/101080/17405620444000238
60.
RamirezG.ChangH.MaloneyE. A.LevineS. C.BeilockS. (2016). On the relationship between math anxiety and math achievement in early elementary school: The role of problem solving strategies. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 141, 83–100. https://doi.org/101016/j.jecp.2015.07.014
61.
RogersK. N.BuchananC. M.WinchelM. E. (2003). Psychological control during early adolescence: Links to adjustment in differing parent/adolescent dyads. The Journal of Early Adolescence, 23(4), 349–383. https://doi.org/101177/0272431603258344
62.
RomanN. V.HumanA.HissD. (2012). Young South African adults’ perceptions of parental psychological control and antisocial behavior. Social Behavior and Personality, 40(7), 1163–1174. https://doi.org/102224/sbp.2012.40.7.1163
63.
RudyD.HalgunsethL. C. (2005). Psychological control, maternal emotion and cognition, and child outcomes in individualist and collectivist groups. Journal of Emotional Abuse, 5(4), 237–264. https://doi.org/101300/J135v05n04_04
64.
RyanR. M.BrownK. W. (2003). Why don’t we need self-esteem: On fundamental needs, contingent love, and mindfulness: Comment. Psychological Inquiry, 14, 71–76.
ScharfM.GoldnerL. (2018). “If you really love me, you will do/be…”: Parental psychological control and its implications for children’s adjustment. Developmental Review, 49, 16–30. https://doi.org/101016/j.dr.2018.07.002
67.
ScharfM.RousseauS.SmithY. (2016). Validation of the dependency-oriented and achievement-oriented psychological control scale in middle childhood. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 25, 1200–1207. https://doi.org/101007/s10826-015-0286-4
68.
SchleiderJ. L.VélezC. E.KrauseE. D.GillhamJ. (2014). Perceived psychological control and anxiety in early adolescents: The mediating role of attributional style. Cognitive Therapy and Research, 38(1), 71–81. https://doi.org/101007/s10608-013-9573-9
69.
SchoneC.TandlerS. S.Stiensmeier-PelsterJ. (2015). Contingent self-esteem and vulnerability to depression: Academic contingent self-esteem predicts depressive symptoms in students. Frontiers in Psychology, 6, 1–13. https://doi.org/103389/fpsyg.2015.01573
70.
SoenensB.VansteenkisteM.LuytenP. (2010). Toward a domain-specific approach to the study of parental psychological control: Distinguishing between dependency-oriented and achievement-oriented psychological control. Journal of Personality, 78(1), 217–256. https://doi.org/101111/j.1467-6494.2009.00614.x
71.
VansteenkisteM.ZhouM.LenW.SoenensB. (2005). Experiences of autonomy and control among Chinese learners: Vitalizing or immobilizing?Journal of Educational Psychology, 97, 468–483. https://doi.org/101037/0022-0663.97.3.468
72.
VukovicR. K.RobertsS. O.WrightL. G. (2013). From parental involvement to children’s mathematical performance: The role of mathematics anxiety. Early Education and Development, 24, 446–467. https://doi.org/101080/10409289.2012.693430
73.
WangQ.PomerantzE. M.ChenH. (2007). The role of parents’ control in early adolescents’ psychological functioning: A longitudinal investigation in the United States and China. Child Development, 78(5), 1592–1610. https://doi.org/101111/j.1467-8624.2007.01085.x
74.
WoutersS.DoumenS.GermeijsV.ColpinH.VerschuerenK. (2013). Contingencies of self-worth in early adolescence: The antecedent role of perceived parenting. Social Development, 22, 242–258. https://doi.org/101111/sode.12010
75.
WuytsD.ChenB.VansteenkisteM.SoenensB. (2015). Social pressure and unfulfilled dreams among Chinese and Belgian parents: Two roads to controlling parenting via child-invested contingent self-esteem. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 46, 1150–1168. https://doi.org/101177/0022022115603125
76.
XuS. (2011). A study of domain-specific academic emotions in children [in Chinese]. Journal of Psychological Science, 34(4), 856–862.
77.
YuS.ChenB.Levesque-BristolC.VansteenkisteM. (2018). Chinese education examined via the lens of self-determination. Educational Psychology Review, 30, 177–214. https://doi.org/101007/s10648-016-9395-x
78.
ZhaoX.SunH.ZhangX. (2018). New learning characteristics of Chinese high school students: Based on twice comparative investigations among students from China, US, Japan, and Korea. China Youth Study, 1, 107–112.
79.
ZhouM.LeeJ. (2017). Hyper-selectivity and the remaking of culture: Understanding the Asian American achievement paradox. Asian American Journal of Psychology, 8, 7–15. https://doi.org/101037/aap0000069
80.
ZhouM. M.MaW. J.DeciE. L. (2009). The importance of autonomy for rural Chinese children’s motivation for learning. Learning and Individual Differences, 19(4), 492–498.
