THE INFLUENCE OF MOTHER’S PARENTING STYLES AND PROSOCIAL BEHAVIOR ON MUSLIM ADOLESCENTS’ RELIGIOUS TOLERANCE

Kinta Erstuputri Herawan ^a* and Lydia Freyani Hawadi ^b.

^a School of Strategic and Global Studies, ^bUniversitas Indonesia, Jakarta, Indonesia; Faculty of Psychology, Universitas Indonesia, Depok, Indonesia.

*^a kinta.erstuputri@ui.ac.id; ^b reni@ui.ac.id

Background:

Intolerance cases in Indonesia have been on the spotlight as reported by the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM, 2017). A survey conducted in 2017 by UIN Syarif Hidayatullah (Indonesia) states that 48,95% of 1.859 Indonesian adolescents feel religious education has significant influence in making decisions not to build relationship with people from other faith (Tirto, 2017). In general, it is inevitable that adolescents are considered vulnerable with regard to their socioemotional development. This factor then influences how they treat people from different group faiths. They are various factors contributing to the religious tolerance of adolescents, from external or internal side of each individual, such as parenting styles (external) and prosocial behavior (internal), which are observed in this study. Many studies have investigated the effects of parenting styles on children’s socioemotional development and behavior (Rosli, 2014; Prianto, 2006; Zhou, Eisenberg, Wang, & Reiser, 2004). However, limited research has been been conducted on parenting styles in certain religion. There is also a lack of research on the influence of parenting styles (authoritatian, authoritative, and permissive) on Muslim adolescents, particularly in their religious tolerance. Meanwhile, based on certain researches prosocial behavior is postively related to adolescence social skills. Adolescent who has a close friendship with a person of a different religion than his or her own were more socially skilled than adolescents who did not. Their teachers viewed them as having higher prosocial behavior and/or sympathy-perspective taking (Eisenberg, et al., 2009). However, there is also a lack of research in this aspect when related to religion especially religious tolerance in Islam. Therefore, this research is intended to fill the research gap. The research observes influences among three varibles using a cross-sectional design. It addresses two questions: a) Do mothers’ parenting styles directly influence Muslim adolescents religious tolerance? b) Do prosocial behavior mediate relations between parenting styles and Muslim adolescents’ religious tolerance?

Methods

In this research, the authors examined the influence of Indonesian Muslim mothers’ parenting styles on their Muslim adolescents’ religious tolerance and whether the adolescents’ prosocial behavior mediates this relation. The research method is a quantitative approach and using structural equation modeling (SEM) to analyze the results. In the data collection, this research uses survey questionnaires, i.e.: Social-Religious Tolerance Index (Talib, 2009), Parental Authority Questionnaire (Buri, 1991), and Prosocial Tendencies Measure – Revised (Carlo, Hausmann, Christiansen, & Randall, 2003).  Research sample were chosen through convenience sampling method of five public and private high schools in Bogor Regency. In the survey that was conducted between October and November 2017, the research obtained 213 samples from high school students aged between 15-16 years old.

Results:

The research findings show that all of mothers’ parenting styles (authoritarian, authoritative, permissive) did not influence directly on adolescents’ religious tolerance. Authoritarian parenting was found to be the most influential parenting style on prosocial behavior, followed by authoritative parenting style. Permissive parenting had little to no effect. Prosocial behavior was proven to moderately mediate the relation between parenting styles and adolescents’ religious tolerance. Therefore, parenting styles have indirect effect on Muslim adolescents’ religious tolerance. Emotional prosocial behavior was found to be the most influential prosocial behavior type that mediate, while authoritarian parenting was the most frequently reported parenting style among the Muslim mothers in the sample.

Conclusion:

It is inevitable that both parents’ parenting style influenced adolescents’ socioemotional development. Therefore, for the future researchers it is encouraged to cover both side of parenting; fathers’ parenting and mothers’ parenting. Future researchers are also encouraged to find out what is the most influencing factor on adolescents’ religious tolerance. All in all, this research is expected to help parents, schools, and policy makers to develop capacities for promoting religious tolerance which eventually lead to a harmonious society.

Keywords: Indonesian Muslim adolescents’ religious tolerance, prosocial behavior, mother’s parenting styles

Word Count: 612 words