Relationship Between Parental Psychological Control and Interpersonal Problems Perceived by College-aged Children: Sequential Mediating Effect of Socially-imposed Perfectionism and Self-Compassion

Objectives: This study aimed to examine the sequential mediating effects of socially prescribed perfectionism and self-compassion on the relationship between parental psychological control and interpersonal problems among college students. Methods: To achieve this, an online self-report survey was conducted with 320 male and female college students from universities located in Seoul and the surrounding metropolitan area. The data were analyzed using SPSS 26 and PROCESS Macro 4.2 for SPSS. Results: The main findings of this study are as follows. First, correlation analysis revealed significant positive correlations between parental psychological control, interpersonal problems, and socially prescribed perfectionism; while significant negative correlations were found between these three variables and self-compassion. Second, the sequential mediating effects of socially prescribed perfectionism and self-compassion on the relationship between parental psychological control and interpersonal problems, as perceived by college students, were found to be significant. Conclusions: The study suggests implications for parental coaching, family counseling, and intervention strategies aimed at addressing interpersonal issues among college students.