The relationship of Parenting Styles with Social Competence amongst children

Abstract

This investigation is an attempt to determine the relationship of parenting styles with social competence amongst children. The sample comprised 360 children (180 males and 180 females), in the age range of 8-10, randomly selected from the various schools of Patiala, and their respective parents. They were administered the Social Skills Rating System – Student Form to assess their social competence, while their respective parents were administered the Parenting Styles and Dimensions Questionnaire to assess their individual parenting style. Correlation analysis of the data revealed that amongst the various sub dimensions of Authoritative parenting style, Connection and Autonomy correlated positively with Co-operation. Authoritarian parenting style correlated negatively with all the dimensions of Social Competence viz., Co-operation, Assertion, Empathy, Self-Control. The Permissive parenting style correlated positively with Assertion. Thus, results indicate that parenting styles play a pivotal role in shaping children’s social competence and overall social development.