ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Psychol.
Sec. Personality and Social Psychology
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2025.1621545
The Influence of Childhood Parenting Style on Self in the period of youth: Analysis of chain mediation effect on DanQi
Provisionally accepted
- 1Guang’anmen Hospital, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China
- 2Department of Medical Nursing, Jiyuan Vocational and Technical College, Henan, China
- 3Faculty of Chinese Medicine, Macau University of Science and Technology, Macau, China
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Background Parents’ parenting styles during early development play a crucial role in shaping various psychological attributes. While much research has focused on cognitive development and emotional regulation, the impact on self-concept formation in adolescence has remained underexplored. Additionally, existing studies neglected the mediating role of psychological resources, such as courage, in the intergenerational transmission of traits and risk factors. Courage (defined as mental strength) is integrated into DanQi, a TCM concept combining physiological and psychological resilience, providing a cross-cultural perspective. Purpose The primary objective of this research is to explore the chain mediation effect of DanQi in the relationship between childhood parenting styles and self-concept in young adulthood. We have hypothesized that positive parenting styles during childhood indirectly influence the development of self-concept in young adulthood by fostering elevated levels of DanQi—conceptualized as boldness or courage—throughout adolescence and into early adulthood. Methods This research employed a quantitative, cross-sectional design, utilizing a stratified random sampling technique to survey urban populations across six major regions of China. Data were collected using subscales from the Wang Weidong Memory-Tracing Personality Developmental Inventory (WMPI), assessing parenting styles, courage, and self-concept across three developmental stages: childhood, adolescence, and young adulthood. Data collection occurred between July and November 2016. A total of 6,539 valid responses were obtained. The statistical software used for data analysis was SPSS 25.0. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, correlation, and regression, and mediation testing (PROCESS Model 6). Results The findings revealed significant positive associations between childhood parenting styles and DanQi in adolescence and young adulthood, as well as self-concept in young adulthood. Mediation analysis indicated that childhood parenting styles indirectly influenced the development of self-concept in young adulthood through adolescent DanQi and young adulthood DanQi. DanQi served as an important mediating factor in the chain of relationships. Conclusion This research provides empirical evidence for the mediating role of DanQi in linking childhood parenting styles to the development of self-concept, underscoring the importance of early parenting in shaping long-term psychological outcomes.
Keywords: parenting styles, self, DanQi, courage, chain mediation, Youth development
Received: 01 May 2025; Accepted: 21 Jul 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Xu, Li, Wang, Lv, Zhang, Zhang, Huang and Wang. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Jian Wang, Guang’anmen Hospital, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China
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