The Protective Role of Caring Parenting Styles in Adolescent Bullying Victimization: The Effects of Family Function and Constructive Conflict Resolution

Based on attachment theory and the McMaster family functioning model, this study explores the protective role and mechanisms of a caring parenting style in protecting adolescents from bullying, from the perspective of the family environment. Study 1, conducted in Southwest China with middle school s...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Haoliang Zhu, Haojie Fu, Haiyan Liu, Bin Wang, Xiao Zhong
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-07-01
Series:Behavioral Sciences
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2076-328X/15/7/982
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Summary:Based on attachment theory and the McMaster family functioning model, this study explores the protective role and mechanisms of a caring parenting style in protecting adolescents from bullying, from the perspective of the family environment. Study 1, conducted in Southwest China with middle school students (n = 4582), investigates the relationship between a caring parenting style and adolescent bullying victimization through a large-scale cross-sectional survey. The results show that both parents’ caring parenting styles are significantly negatively correlated with adolescent bullying victimization. Study 2, a two-wave study (n = 302), explores the protective mechanisms of a caring parenting style in adolescent bullying victimization. We not only observed again that a caring parenting style significantly negatively predicts bullying victimization but also found that family functioning and constructive conflict resolution play a chain-mediating role in this relationship. This finding not only supports the core hypothesis of attachment theory regarding the role of a secure base but also expands the theoretical model of bullying protection from a family ecological perspective by revealing a three-level transmission mechanism of parenting style–family system–individual capability, providing a theoretical anchor for the construction of a “family–school” collaborative intervention framework.
ISSN:2076-328X