Perceived parental social control following a recalled physical activity lapse: Impact on adolescents’ reported behavior

ObjectivesThe present study examined whether the perceived use, preferences and perceptions of supportiveness of parental control following an activity lapse would impact an adolescent’s recovery from the lapse.MethodFollowing the recall of a physical activity lapse, adolescents (N = 63) reported the different types of social control (e.g., positive, negative, collaborative) their parents used, their perceptions of the supportiveness of the types, self-reported change in activity and preferences for social control types.ResultsFor positive social control, congruence between use and preferences predicted positive activity change (RΔ2 = .12, p < .001) where a high preference and reported use were associated with positive behavior change. For collaborative social control, both parents’ use and perceiving the social control as supportive by the adolescent were important for behavior change (RΔ2 = .17, p = .001). Perceiving social control as supportive was important for reported behavior change in response to the receipt of negative social control.ConclusionsThis preliminary study examined reactions by adolescents to parents’ use of social control following a lapse. Initial support was provided for perceived use (positive and collaborative social control), preferences (positive social control), and perceptions of supportiveness (collaborative and negative social control) of social control tactics being related to increased activity following a lapse.

Research highlights:
► Adolescents appear to respond to parental regulatory actions after an activity lapse;
► Use of collaborative social control (SC) may be associated with return to activity;
► Return to activity may be associated with a use/preference match for positive SC;
► Perceiving negative SC as supportive appears to influence return to activity