Prospective Associations Between Parenting Styles and Adolescents' Social-Emotional Competence: A Cross-Lagged Network Analysis

Adolescence involves substantial developmental changes, with social-emotional competence (SEC) serving as an important protective factor. However, how parenting styles are prospectively associated with adolescents' SEC in the Chinese cultural context remains unclear. A two-wave longitudinal study was conducted among 1167 middle school students in China (52.4% male; baseline Mage = 13.16 years, SD = 0.93). Using longitudinal data and a cross-lagged panel network analysis (CLPN), we examined the temporal relationships among parental autonomy support, psychological control, and SEC. Opinion exchange showed a positive prospective association with later self-management. Adolescent self-management showed a limited adolescent-to-parent prospective association, whereas responsible decision-making showed relatively prominent incoming and outgoing prospective connectivity and may warrant further investigation in confirmatory and intervention research. These findings highlight the potential relevance of parent-adolescent communication and emotional support for adolescents' social-emotional functioning.