Relationships between parental involvement in homework and learning outcomes among elementary school students: The moderating role of societal collectivism–individualism

Abstract Background Parents are often involved in their child's homework with the goal of improving their child's academic achievement. However, mixed findings were observed for the role of parental involvement in homework in shaping students' learning outcomes. Aims The present study examined whether and how the effect of parental involvement in homework on students' performance in science and math varies across sociocultural contexts by considering the degrees of societal collectivism–individualism. Methods The present study used a large‐scale dataset, consisting of participants from 43 countries/regions, to test whether societal collectivism–individualism would moderate the relationship between three types of parental involvement (asking, helping and checking) in homework and elementary school students' academic performance in math and science. Results The multi‐level analyses revealed diverse effects of different parental involvement behaviours for homework. Helping and checking behaviours were generally negatively associated with elementary school students' academic achievement, but asking behaviours were positively associated with their academic achievement. Importantly, the positive effect of asking behaviours was stronger, while the negative effect of helping behaviours was weaker in collectivistic societies than in individualistic societies. Conclusions The present study highlights the importance of considering the multifaceted nature of parental homework involvement and the sociocultural contexts that vary in collectivism–individualism when evaluating the role of parents in elementary school students' learning in math and science.