Generational changes in parenting styles and the effect of culture

This study investigated generational changes in parenting styles and the effect of culture by means of a cross cultural comparison of Greek-Australians and Anglo-Australians. The community based sample of parents comprised 34 Anglo-Australians (M=45.74 years, SD=7.28) and 31 Greek-Australians (M=42.65 years, SD=4.85) who completed a series of self report questionnaires about their own parenting style and that of their parents. The Greek-Australians reported that their parents utilised an authoritarian child rearing style in the upbringing of their children significantly more than did their Anglo-Australian counterparts. However both second generation Greek-Australian parents and their Anglo-Australian counterparts reported that they were significantly more authoritative parents than were the previous generation of parents. Results also indicated that males from both generations were likely to display a more authoritarian parenting style than females; and that females from both generations were likely to display a more authoritative parenting style than males. However males from either generation did not have a more permissive style of parenting than females. A generational change in parenting styles towards a more lenient and democratic style may have occurred, but rather than being culturally based, results suggested that this reflected an overall societal trend towards an authoritative child rearing style.