Adolescents’ internalization of moral values: the role of paternal and maternal promotion of volitional functioning

Abstract

This study analyzed the associations between adolescents’ motivations for internalizing moral values and perceived parental (both father’s and mother’s) promotion of volitional functioning. Based on the Self-Determination Theory, four types of motivations were analyzed: external and introjected motivations, where compliance with values is experienced as being externally controlled or related to a sense of internal obligation; identified and integrated motivations, where values are authentically internalized into the self. Participants were 789 adolescents (54.5% females; 14–19 years) living in Northern Italy. They were asked to complete the Moral Values Internalization Questionnaire and the Autonomy-Support Scale. Results showed that maternal, but not paternal, promotion of volitional functioning was significantly and positively associated with identified and integrated motivations for internalizing moral values, this regardless of adolescents’ sex and age. Implications for internalization process and parent–adolescent relationships will be discussed.