Parenting Style, Parental Personality, and Child Temperament in Children with Anxiety Disorders—A Clinical Study from India

Abstract

Background: Anxiety disorders are common in children and contribute to adverse developmental outcomes. Although etiological models of child anxiety have identified various environmental factors, very few studies in India have examined these factors in children presenting with anxiety disorders. Therefore, the present study was designed to examine parenting styles, parental personality, and child temperament in children with anxiety disorders in an Indian outpatient setting. Methods: In total, 42 children with anxiety disorders and 42 typically developing children, matched on age and gender, were screened using Child Behavior Checklist, Color Progressive Matrices, and Screen for Child Anxiety Related Emotional Disorders Parent version. Their parents were screened using Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview 5.0, following which they filled the questionnaires for parenting styles, parent personality, and child temperament. Results: There were significant differences between the two groups on parenting style, parent personality, and child temperament. Anxiety disorder was positively associated with the father’s permissiveness and negatively with the mother’s authoritativeness and child’s sociability. A combination of parenting styles and child temperament explained 69% of the variances in child anxiety disorders. There were significant associations between parental personality, child temperament, and parenting style. Parent and child characteristics explained 14%–46% of the variances in parenting styles. Conclusion: Results of this study are generally consistent with Western studies outlining the influence of child temperament and parenting styles on child outcome and have important implications for clinical management of anxiety disorders.