Perceptions of Parental Control in China: Effects of Cultural Values, Cultural Normativeness, and Perceived Parental Acceptance

The purpose of this study was to examine Chinese young adults’ judgments, of parental control across a range of domains (e.g., clothing and friendship), whether judgments would be influenced by experimentally manipulated information regarding cultural values and cultural normativeness, and whether perceptions of parental acceptance/rejection influenced parental control judgments. Participants viewed parental control of training school and clothing more positively than parental control of friendship or use of physical discipline. Contrary to expectations, participants did not view parental control more positively when primed with information about cultural values. Surprisingly, participants’ views of parental control were more negative when primed with information about the high cultural normativeness of parental control as compared with neutral or low normativeness conditions. Regardless of type of control, participants viewed parental control more positively when control was perceived as based on love and acceptance rather than a desire to control the child.