The associations among parental warmth and hostility and student engagement in math and the mediating role of effortful control among Chinese children.

The associations among parenting behaviors, effortful control, and student engagement in math were examined in a sample of Chinese children. The sample was composed of 778 students (Mage = 10.43 years, SD = 0.99) from Grades 4 to 6 in Shanghai, China. Children completed questionnaires to assess parental warmth and hostility, effortful control, and student engagement in math. The results indicated that parental warmth was positively correlated with math engagement whereas parental hostility was negatively correlated with math engagement. In addition, mediational analyses indicated that effortful control fully mediated the association between parental hostility and math engagement, but partially mediated the association between parental warmth and math engagement. This study offers insights into a mediating mechanism linking the relationships among parenting behaviors, effortful control, and math engagement.