Maternal Psychological Control and Social Anxiety in Early Adolescents: The Moderated Mediation of Perfectionistic Self-Presentation and Friend Support
AUTHOR : 조민영, 임정하
INFORMATION : page. 179~193 / 2026 Vol.33 No.3
ABSTRACT
The purpose of this study is to examine the moderated mediation effect of perfectionistic self-presentation and friend support on the relationship between maternal psychological control and social anxiety among early adolescents. A total of 322 adolescents in the 1st and 2nd grades of middle school participated in the study. Data were analyzed using t-tests, and moderated mediation Model 14 in the Process macro for SPSS. Girls reported higher levels of perfectionistic self-presentation than boys, whereas no gender differences found for maternal psychological control, social anxiety, or friend support. Testing the model within each gender group showed that, for girls, maternal psychological control was associated with greater social anxiety indirectly through higher perfectionistic self-presentation, and this indirect effect was weaker when friend support was higher. For boys, the moderated mediation effect was not supported. Overall, the findings suggest that peer support may buffer the social anxiety risk associated with maternal psychological control via perfectionistic self-presentation, particularly among girls, underscoring the need for gender-sensitive prevention efforts that target perfectionistic self-presentation and strengthen supportive peer relationships.