PARENTING STYLES AND ENTERPRISE POTENTIAL AMONG ADOLESCENTS

Abstract

Childhood experience is widely documented to influence behaviour in later stages of development, and parents in its generic sense are at the centre of the experience. This study examined whether parenting styles differ in their influence on enterprise potential, and what influence gender has on experience of parenting styles and on degree of enterprise potential of adolescents. Two hundred and eleven undergraduates of a State-owned university in south-south Nigeria participated in the study. The sample comprised of 101 males and 110 females, with mean age of 21 years and a standard deviation of 2.37. The design of the study was cross-sectional and data were collected through self-report measure. Data analyses revealed significant parenting style difference in enterprise potential among adolescents F(2,178) = 2.97,p< .05). No significant gender difference in experience of authoritative t(103) = .64, p > .05, authoritarian t(47) = .42, p > .05 and permissive t(55) = .43, p > .05 parenting styles of adolescents were observed. Also, no significant gender difference in enterprise potential was observed t(209) = .26, p> .05). Based on the results It was concluded that the authoritative parenting style has the most significant influence on the enterprise potential of Nigerian adolescents.