Helicopter Parenting and Youth Affective Well-Being: Need Satisfaction as a Within-Family Mediator

Abstract Parenting processes occur within families and unfold over time. According to Self-Determination Theory (SDT), helicopter parenting can threaten youth’s psychological need satisfaction and undermine well-being. This study represents the first investigation of these theorized within-family, time-lagged processes. The research followed 350 late adolescents in Hong Kong ( M age = 18.2, SD age = 1.09, 39.7% male, 60.3% female, 98.9% Chinese) for an academic year, collecting 16 bi-weekly reports of maternal helicopter parenting, youth affective well-being, and youth psychological need satisfaction. Preregistered Dynamic Structural Equation Models showed that, within families, helicopter parenting predicted decreased autonomy and relatedness (but not competence) satisfaction, which subsequently predicted decreased positive affect and increased negative affect. Parenting effects were time-dependent, exhibiting differences in valence and statistical significance between concurrent and time-lagged associations. This meso-longitudinal study highlights the applicability of SDT to parenting contexts and underscores the significance of considering the timeframe in understanding parenting processes.