This meta-analysis study examined perceived parental differences between Chinese mothers and fathers from the perspective of adolescents. A systematic search for relevant articles published up to 2019 was performed in electronic databases. The random-effect model was used to calculate the weighted and pooled effect size at the 95% confidence interval. This study was based on 43 studies in English peer-reviewed journals involving 55,759 Chinese adolescents aged between 11 and 18 years. We conducted subgroup analyses to explore whether differences in study designs (i.e., cross-sectional and longitudinal) and adolescent gender could explain perceived parental differences. The results showed that perceived maternal parenting attributes were more positive than perceived paternal parenting attributes in cross-sectional and longitudinal studies. Besides, perceived paternal parenting attributes showed slightly greater variability than did maternal parenting attributes. Subgroup analysis based on adolescent gender revealed that only adolescent girls perceived maternal parenting attributes to be more positive than paternal parenting attributes.
Keywords: Chinese; adolescents; maternal parenting; meta-analysis; parental difference; parenting; paternal parenting.