Parenting Styles and Self-Efficacy among Secondary School Students in Ibanda North, Ibanda District, Uganda

Abstract

The main purpose of the current study was to analyze the relationship between parenting styles and self-efficacy among secondary school students in Ibanda North, Ibanda district Uganda. The study also examined the contribution of individual parenting styles in predicting students’ self-efficacy. The study was quantitative and cross sectional-correlational in nature. Questionnaires were used to gather data from 290 participants 136 (47%) males and 154(53%) females. Data were analyzed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 21.0. The findings of the study showed that there was moderate positive significant correlation between authoritative parenting style and self-efficacy (r = .365, p< 0.01). Authoritarian parenting style had a low positive significant relationship with self-efficacy (r = .169, p< 0.01). Permissive parenting style had a low positive insignificant relationship with self-efficacy (r=.090, p>0.01) and uninvolved parenting style had a low negative relationship with self-efficacy (r=.-.090, p>0.01). All parenting styles computed together indicated a high positive significant relationship with self-efficacy (r=.620, p>0.01). On individual parenting styles’ contribution to predicting self-efficacy, findings revealed that only authoritative parenting style was significant 𝑡 (285) =5.673, 𝑝 (.000) < .05. The study, therefore, recommends that parents should adopt authoritative and authoritarian parenting styles, teachers should give necessary support to students taking in mind the parenting setting they could be coming from, schools should take an initiation of encouraging parents do adopt positive parenting styles.