The role of parenting style of single parents in young children’s risk-taking

Abstract

The present study was designed to understand how differences in parenting styles between single mothers and single fathers influenced the factors related to child risk-taking behaviors. The results showed that mothers’ higher level of authoritarian parenting style was related to higher levels of risk-taking for both daughters and sons. In contrast, father’s higher level of permissive parenting style was related to higher levels of risk-taking for sons, but not daughters. Overall, the amount of the authoritarian, permissive, and authoritative parenting style did not differ significantly for mothers and fathers, and risk-taking did not vary significantly for sons and daughters. Sensation-seeking was significantly higher for sons than daughters. Theoretical and practical implications regarding risk-taking development are discussed.