Unravelling the impact of Perceived Parental Styles on Curiosity and Exploration

Abstract

This study was aimed at investigating the role of perceived parenting styles in predicting curiosity and exploration among university students. It is obvious that personality, behavioral and cognitive characteristics of human are affected by parents and it seems that parenting styles that parents use in rearing their children affect their personality and cognitive characteristics. Data were collected from Bahauddin Zakariya University Multan, Pakistan. Sample of 171 students were selected through convenient sampling. Two research instruments were used to measure the variables. Findings of the study reveal that permissive and authoritative parenting styles are the significant positive predictors of curiosity and exploration among students. Moreover, there is positive correlation among these constructs. Furthermore, results indicate that there is no significant impact of authoritarian parental style in predicting curiosity and exploration. In addition, there was no statistically significant difference of curiosity and exploration between male and female students.  In the light of study, parents need to practice the health parenting styles to nourish their children.