The Structual Relationships between Mothers' Authoritarian Parenting Behavior, Childrens' Peer Attachment and Academic Stress on Happiness: The Mediating Effects of Peer Attachment and Academic Stress and Their Sequential Double Mediating Effects

The purpose of this study is to confirm the structural relationship between mothers' authoritarian parenting behavior, elementary school students' peer attachment, and academic stress on happiness, and examine sequential double mediating effects of peer attachment and academic stress. Data from 1,384 children in the fourth grade of elementary school and their mothers were used from the 11th year of the Korean Children's Panel (2018), and structural equation model analysis were conducted through SPSS 23.0 and AMOS 23.0. First, children's peer attachment and academic stress had a direct effect on their happiness. Second, the mother's authoritarian parenting behavior had an indirect effect on happiness through the child's peer attachment and academic stress. Third, a sequential double mediating effect of peer attachment and academic stress appeared in the relationship between the mother's authoritarian parenting behavior and the child's happiness. This study showed that the mother's strong authoritarian parenting behavior can weaken school-age children's peer attachment and increase academic stress, leading to a decrease in happiness. Furthermore, to improve children's happiness, the importance of mediating mothers' authoritarian parenting behavior and promoting peer attachment as a coping resource for alleviating academic stress was discussed and support was suggested.