Need satisfaction as a mediator of associations between interparental relationship dimensions and autonomy supportive parenting: a weekly diary study

Official URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/famp.12523

Guided by the self-determination theory, this weekly diary study tested a process model in which week-to-week mother-reported interparental conflict and perceived partner responsiveness were associated with maternal autonomy support by means of maternal psychological need satisfaction. During six consecutive weeks, 258 mothers (Mage = 41.71 years) and their 157 adolescents (51.4% females, Mage = 14.92 years) from Turkey provided weekly reports of the study variables via an online survey. Multilevel analyses showed that maternal need satisfaction was predicted by lower levels of inter- parental conflict and greater levels of perceived partner responsiveness. Maternal need sat- isfaction, in turn, was positively associated with maternal and adolescent reports of maternal autonomy support. Further, these week-to-week associations were partly moder- ated by maternal perfectionism. The results underscore the dynamic nature of the intra- family relationships, the important role of particular conditions in which mothers may become more autonomy supportive, and the necessity to consider mother’s personal charac- teristics while examining these dynamics.