Parental and Peer Acceptance and Rejection and Cross-Context Interactions

• In Event: Poster Session 10
  In Poster Session: PS 10 Topic - Social Relationships

Abstract

Perceiving acceptance by parents and peers predicted psychological well-being (Rohner, 1986; Carrasco, Delgado, & Holgado-Tello, 2019), whereas perception of rejection from those two social agents predicted impairments in adjustment in children's and adolescents' lives (Dwairy, 2009; Buhs, & Ladd, 2001). It is consequential to investigate possible remedies that would ameliorate the negative impact of rejection on children's and adolescents' psychological maladjustment. One might predict and hope that acceptance in one social context will have a compensatory effect against the rejection in the other social context. The current study aimed to examine the cross-context interactions of parental acceptance and rejection and peer acceptance and rejection. Based on the developmental needs of children and adolescents, it was expected that in childhood, parental acceptance would have a buffering effect on peer rejection. It was also expected that in adolescence, peer acceptance would have a buffering effect on parental rejection against internalizing and externalizing behaviors.
A total of 315 children and adolescents and their mothers participated in the study. 196 children were in the 3rd, 4th, and 5th grades, and 119 adolescents were in the 9th, 10th, and 11th grades. The mothers completed the Demographic Information Form and the Externalizing and Internalizing Scales of Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL; Achenbach & Rescorla, 2001). The children and adolescents completed the Parental Acceptance-Rejection Questionnaire (PARQ; Rohner and Khaleque, 2005) and the Peer Acceptance and Rejection Scale (Erel-Gozagac & Berument, 2016).
In order to test the protective role of parental acceptance in children's perceived peer rejection, hierarchical regression analyses were conducted. The interaction between maternal acceptance and peer rejection was associated with children's externalizing behaviors (β = -.30, p < .05). The simple slope analysis indicated that for children with high maternal acceptance, peer rejection was not related to children's externalizing behaviors (see Figure 1).
Hierarchical regression analyses also tested the protective role of peer acceptance in adolescents' perceived parental rejection. The interaction between paternal rejection and peer acceptance was significantly associated with externalizing behaviors (β = -.33, p < .05). The simple slope analysis showed that for adolescents with high peer acceptance, father rejection was not significantly associated with externalizing behaviors (see Figure 2).
Lastly, for adolescent girls, the interaction between paternal rejection and peer acceptance was associated with internalizing behaviors (β = -.45, p < 0.05). The simple slope analysis showed that for adolescent girls with high peer acceptance, the paternal rejection was not significantly associated with internalizing behaviors.
According to these results, acceptance from different social contexts might ameliorate the adverse effects of rejection. The buffering effects of acceptance differ based on age, the gender of the child, and the gender of the parent. The findings and the theoretical and practical implications of the current study will be further discussed.

Authors

• Zeynep Su Altinoz, Auburn University
  Presenting Author

• Sibel KazakBerument, Middle East Technical University
  Non-Presenting Author

• Basak Sahin-Acar, Middle East Technical University
  Non-Presenting Author

• Aysun Dogan, Ege University
  Non-Presenting Author

• Deniz Tahiroglu, Boğaziçi Üniversitesi (BOUN)
  Non-Presenting Author