Antecedents of provided autonomy support and psychological control within close friendships: The role of evaluative concerns perfectionism and basic psychological needs

- ECP related to more given friendship control via more need frustration
- ECP related to less given friendship autonomy support via less need satisfaction
- The first study on the role of ECP in given friendship control and autonomy support

Although receiving autonomy support within close friendships has been found to relate to higher levels of psychosocial well-being, less is known about why some friends are more autonomy supportive or controlling than others. The present study investigated the role of individuals' evaluative concerns perfectionism and experienced need satisfaction or frustration within the friendship as predictors of provided autonomy support and psychological control towards their best same-sex friend. Participants were 108 young adults (Mage = 23.18; SD = 2.26; 66.7% women) who reported on their level of evaluative concerns perfectionism, friendship need satisfaction and frustration, and provided friendship autonomy support and psychological control. Results showed that evaluative concerns perfectionism related positively to provided psychological control and negatively to provided autonomy support via, respectively, higher need frustration and lower need satisfaction.