Adolescents possible selves and parental promotion of challenges

MOLINA, M.F.; SCHMIDT, V.; RAIMUNDI, M.J.

Self-Perception: Research Advances and Clinical Challenges

Nova Science Publishers

Lugar: New York; Año: 2017; p. 83 - 126

Possible selves (PSs) are the self-knowledge of our potential and our future. They are the multifacetic components of self-concept projected into the future. These self-perceptions are of great importance for adolescents? development. They are linked with identity exploration, motivation and have a significant role in behavior regulation. It is for this reason that PSs have important implications for psychotherapy. Social context has a strong influence in PSs construction. Especially, parents are thought to have critical impact in PSs development. Nonetheless, parent-child relationship?s influence in adolescents? PSs needs to be studied more deeply. Recently, Positive Psychology has proposed a new characteristic of parent-child relationship of importance for adolescents: parental promotion of challenges. This research aim is to study the relationship between adolescents? PSs and the parental promotion of challenges. To better understand this relationship a specific aim is to study current self-concept´s mediating effect in the relationship between PSs and parental promotion of challenges. Another specific aim is to study sex moderating effect. Participants were adolescents (n = 320) of both sexes (female = 51.3%) from private and catholic high-schools from Argentina (age, M = 14.89, SD = 1.51). They completed the Parental Promotion of Challenges Scale, the Self-perception Profile for Adolescents, and the Possible Selves Scale for Adolescents. The relationship between PSs and parental promotion of challenges were studied using Pearson?s correlations and linear regressions. Self-concept´s mediating effect was studied following Baron and Kenny approach. Bootstrapped Confidence Intervals were used to test the significance of the indirect effect (mediation). Results revealed that parental promotion of challenges predicted adolescents? PSs in all the studied domains and current self-concept mediates most of this relationship. Parental challenges predicted male and female adolescents? PSs. Nonetheless, same differences were found in the dimensions of parental promotion of challenge that predicted each domain of PSs. These findings have clinical implications. Knowing the factors involved in PSs development allow to intervene on them and use their motivational power to promote the desired changes.