quotSHYNESS AND ITS RELATIONSHIP TO PARENTING STYLES AMONG ADOLESCENTS IN MYSOREquot

Abstract

quotShyness is a quality which hinders the growth of positive thoughts and dampens the self-confidence of one self. Shy individuals lack understanding about their own strengths and weakness thus finding it difficult to adjust themselves in various situations of life. There are various studies which have tried to understand the factors which influence shyness in children and adolescents. newlineThe study aimed at exploring the relationship between shyness and parenting styles among adolescents. Shyness was assessed using Modified Shyness Questionnaire on a sample of 917 participants in the age group of 13 to 17 years, studying in 8th, 9th, and 10th standards in different types of schools located in rural and urban areas of Mysore. Parenting style was assessed using Adapted English and Kannada version of Parenting Style Inventory and gender role (masculinity-femininity) was assessed using Gender Role Inventory to compare the perceived parenting styles and gender role in them. Further the participants were classified into two percentile groups, based on the shyness scores and there were 258 participants below 25th percentile and 226 above 75th percentile. In order to assess the predictors of parenting styles on shyness, the 917 participants were subjected to different regression analysis. Perceived parenting styles by the participants who were low shy and high shy was compared. Gender differences in the perception of parenting styles were also explored. newlineThe results showed that sociodemographic variables like place of stay, socioeconomic status and caste of adolescents influenced the level of shyness in them. Whereas, their age, gender, domicile, type of school, standard of study, academic performance, birth order family type and play habits did not affect shyness. Gender role (masculinity and femininity) did not influence shyness. While paternal demanding parenting styles were related positively with shyness, paternal coercive style was negatively correlated with shyness. Paternal responsive style and permissive style sho