The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationships between parenting attitudes, stress coping behavior and perfectionism focusing on the mediating effect of self-encouragement from elementary school students in higher grade. The subjects for this study are selected the 4th-6th grade 532 students(275 male students and 257 female students) staying in Dae-gu being used questionnaires from February 5st to May 11st in 2014. The collected data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Pearson’s correlation analysis(SPSS) and structural equation model (AMOS).
The major results of this study were as follows.
First, autonomy-control parenting attitude was not affect children’s self-encouragement directly.
Second, autonomy-control parenting attitude was affect children’s ‘passive/ avoidant’ stress coping behavior directly.
Third, receptive-refusal and non excessive-excessive parenting attitudes showed an indirect effect on ‘active’, ‘aggressive’, ‘passive/ avoidant’, ‘social support seeking’ stress coping behavior competence mediated by self- encouragement.
Forth, receptive-refusal parenting attitude showed an indirect effect on self-oriented perfectionism and socially prescribed perfectionism competence mediated by self-encouragement.
Fifth, non excessive-excessive parenting attitude showed an direct effect on self-oriented perfectionism and socially prescribed perfectionism. And non excessive-excessive parenting attitude showed an indirect effect on self-oriented perfectionism and socially prescribed perfectionism mediated by self-encouragement.
As a result of the structural analysis, it was found that the self-encouragement took a role of an intervening variable between parenting attitudes towards stress coping behavior and perfectionism. Therefore, strengthening of positive parenting attitudes and self-encouragement enhance the ‘active’, ‘social support seeking’ stress coping behavior. And strengthening of positive parenting attitudes and self-encouragement reduce the ‘aggressive’, ‘passive/ avoidant’ stress coping behavior, self-oriented perfectionism, socially prescribed perfectionism. The present study results can provide the basic information for construction of children’s counseling and parent’s education.