Global Study Finds Parental Psychological Control Usually Declines as Teens Age
A new international study tracking 1,338 adolescents across nine countries shows that parents generally exert less psychological control as their children reach middle adolescence. How quickly that control wanes, however, depends on the cultural context. Medellin contributed 108 participants, making Colombia one of the locations included in the research. Published online in September 2026 in […]
A global study tracking the behavior of 1,338 adolescents across nine countries has revealed that parental psychological control typically diminishes as children age into their teenage years. This change, however, varies depending on cultural context. The research, published in Social Development, analyzed data collected over five years between the ages of 12 and 16.
The findings, part of the long-running Parenting Across Cultures project, examined five waves of parent-reported data from 12 cultural contexts, including Italy, the United States, and Colombia (represented by Medellin with 108 participants).
Psychological control refers to parenting behaviors that influence a child's thoughts, feelings, and emotions, potentially restricting their independence. It differs from typical supervision or setting household rules, as it targets the child's psychological life. Examples include making a child feel guilty to influence their decisions or withdrawing affection when disagreeing with a parent.
The study found that parents generally reported a gradual decrease in psychological control as their children transitioned from age 12 to 16 in most locations. However, some cultures showed little change. One notable cross-cultural pattern involved fathers in all 12 locations who placed higher importance on family obligations. These fathers reported slight reductions in psychological control across all cultures.
Family obligation, defined as the importance parents attach to family responsibilities, emerged as a significant cultural factor affecting parenting behavior.
While pubertal development showed only limited predictive power for fathers' reports of psychological control in just two locations, the study's results indicate that changes in parenting during adolescence are influenced by more than just the child's physical development. Parents' values regarding family responsibilities also play a crucial role in shaping how their reported behavior evolves over time.
The research underscores the importance of considering cultural contexts when examining the dynamics of parenting and adolescent development.
Written by urgent.news from Colombia One's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
