Exploring The Impact of Interoception-Related Parenting on Social, Emotional, and Behavioral Skills: The Mediating Role of Positive Self-Concept
Social, Emotional, and Behavioral (SEB) skills refer to an individual’s ability to maintain interpersonal relationships, regulate emotions, and manage goal-directed behaviors. These skills are influenced by foundational social cognitive abilities and emotional functioning. Recent studies suggest that interoception is shaped by parent-child interactions. This study explored whether interoception-related parenting affects SEB skills through the mediating variable of positive self-concept. A total of 160 Chinese participants (M~age~ = 23.55, 83 females) completed the Recollected Interoception-Related Parenting Questionnaire (RIPQ), the Behavioral, Emotional, and Social Skills Inventory (BESSI), and the Oxford Positive Self Scale (OPSS). Results indicated that positive interoception-related parenting was significantly associated with higher levels of SEB skills. A partial mediation analysis, controlling for negative parenting, found that positive self-concept played a significant mediating role (Indirect Effect = 3.49, p < .001, 95% CI [1.94, 5.03]) between positive parenting and SEB skills. This suggests that positive parenting practices may enhance self-beliefs, thereby promoting socioemotional and behavioral abilities.
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