This study aimed at examining the relations between emerging adults' perceived parenting styles and their mate preferences, with the potential mediators of their dual filial piety beliefs. We also explored the dyadic relations between adult children and their parents' perceptions of parenting styles and both their preferences on children's potential mates, with children's filial piety beliefs as potential mediators. We recruited 368 emerging adults in study 1 and included 283 valid parent-child dyads in study 2. Emerging adults completed self-report measures assessing their perceived parenting (authoritative and authoritarian), dual filial piety beliefs (reciprocal and authoritarian), and mate preferences, while parents reported their preferences for potential in-laws and parenting styles.
Results from study 1, using structural equation modeling, indicated that both authoritative and authoritarian parenting were correlated with mate preferences for good genes and good resources. When dual filial piety beliefs were included as mediators, reciprocal filial piety belief fully mediated the relations between authoritative parenting and mate preferences for good genes, but authoritarian filial piety belief could not work as a mediator. In study 2, cross-sectional actor-partner interdependence models showed that children's perceived authoritative parenting had actor effects on preferences for good resources and partner effects on preferences for good genes. Parents' perceived authoritarian parenting had both actor and partner effects on preferences for both good genes and good resources. When children's dual filial piety beliefs were included as mediators, reciprocal filial piety belief fully mediated the actor effects of authoritative parenting on preferences for good genes.
The findings reveal the significant roles of parenting styles and filial piety beliefs in shaping Chinese emerging adults' mate preferences, highlighting the importance of cultural and familial context in understanding romantic preferences.