Receipt date: 12/06/23 / Revision date: 07/11/23 / Acceptance date: 20/12/23

Introduction

It includes the presentation of the paper and the analysis of the literature on the subject, with special emphasis on previous research that justifies the study and that will be contrasted in the discussion of the results.

All text is in 12-point Cambria font, single-spaced and with no spacing between paragraphs. As mentioned by Velasquez (2020)socialization has moved human societies since primordial times, being the key to human evolution due to its imperative role in the adaptation to the environment, survival, creation of means of solution, ideas of resources, etc. The person is a being in relationship, so that while growing, he/she acquires different learning processes that are translated into social participation and the establishment of relationships (García & Peraltilla, 2019). 

Socialization arises from the unity of the family, which is considered the nucleus of the basis of society. In this social group, bonds that have been characteristic in the course of time and history are strengthened and its main responsibility is to provide education and training to its members, seeking the development of their potential, as well as fulfilling an affective function linked to self-esteem, sense of belonging and emotional intelligence (Díaz et al., 2020) all this is achieved through various methods called parenting styles (Velasquez, 2020).

Parenting styles encompass different ways, behaviors and attitudes that fathers, mothers or guardians use in families to guide, educate and train their sons and daughters, and are relevant because they are closely related to emotional, affective, social and academic environments (Vega Ojeda, 2020) there is even evidence that relates parenting styles to relevant psychological variables such as anxiety and depression (Aguilar-Yamuza et al., 2019) and to the presence or absence of violent behavior, substance abuse or delinquency in adult life (Rodríguez-Villamizar & Amaya-Castellanos, 2019). These are practical schemes that act as educational guidelines for basic dimensions that, when mixed together, generate different types of parental education (Rojas, 2020).

With respect to parenting styles, two models are mostly used, which have led to the construction of measurement instruments for research or, also, as support for psychological practice in clinical and even social settings. Firstly, the one derived from the research of Raskin, Boothe, Reating and Schulterbrandt, and the one carried out by Jacobson, Fasman and Dimascio (1971) and those carried out by Jacobson, Fasman and Dimascio (1975). This first model focuses on the memories that adults have about the parenting practices in their family during childhood; it allows us to understand parenting styles in fifteen subscales that in turn can be grouped into four general factors. In order to provide organized information, a table showing this classification is presented below:

Table 1

Classification of factors and subscales of the first model

Despite the diversity and depth in factors and subscales of the first model, the orientation to the past and the fact that it was built based on research conducted on patients with psychopathologies such as clinical depression, makes it not very viable to guide the course of this research given the differences in the context of the sample, including the place of origin, since this proposal is of European origin. 

On the other hand, the second model arises mainly from Baumrind's research in the Americas, specifically in the United States (1991) on the American continent, specifically in the United States. As mentioned by García and Peraltilla (2019)baumrind's conceptualization establishes that the socialization process that takes place within the social group that is the family ends up influencing the development of various competencies of children and adolescents since it involves the teaching and learning of different forms of behavior, values and belief systems that allow and facilitate the integration and interaction in a social context; in such a way that the socialization of a child and/or adolescent is expressed in the style that parents will predominantly use in the upbringing of their children (Musitu & García, F., 2004).

As Tenempaguay-Solís and Martínez-Yacelga state (2021) this model establishes its classification based on the degree of behavioral control, vigilance and affective expression that fathers, mothers and guardians maintain with their children, offering a system of factors grouped as follows:

1. Democratic style: characterized by parents with a flexible and listening attitude towards their children's needs. Presents a high affective response combined with high control, prioritizing the acceptance of children and seeking their autonomy (García & Peraltilla, 2019). It presupposes adequate family communication in which fathers and mothers are concerned about the emotional and affective stability of their children, supervise their behavior and only appeal to authority in case of disobedience of rules, which are co-constructed together with all members of the family (Tenempaguay-Solís & Martínez-Yacelga, 2021).
2. Authoritarian style: characterized by inflexible, controlling and demanding fathers and mothers who are not very affectionate (Tenempaguay-Solís & Martínez-Yacelga, 2021)in this style, the aim is to mold and control behavior based on absolute, rigid criteria, based entirely on authority; obedience is prioritized using punishments that limit autonomy when behavior is not consistent with the ideas of the guardians (García & Peraltilla, 2019).
3. Permissive style: in this style, fathers and mothers are usually very affectionate but no limits are set; therefore, it is likely that infants have difficulties to integrate successfully into other social groups (Tenempaguay-Solís & Martínez-Yacelga, 2021)the rules used lack consistency; parenting is not oriented to molding behavior; instead, it seeks to fulfill the children's desires and avoid their suffering; manipulation is often used (García & Peraltilla, 2019).

The different parenting styles of this model are shown below in an organized manner with their main characteristics, adding those which, according to Torío, Peña and Rodríguez, are the following (Citados en Pinta et al., 2019) are the main educational consequences for children:

Table 2 Classification of parenting styles of the second model
Parenting styles	Parental behavioral traits	Educational consequences on sons and daughters
Democratic	Manifest affection. Sensitivity to the needs of the child. Explanations. Promotion of desirable behaviors. Inductive discipline. Promotion of exchange and open communication. Warmth and democratic climate.	Social competence. Self-control. Motivation. Initiative. Autonomous morality. High self-esteem. Spontaneity. Responsibility. Prosociability inside and outside the home. Decrease in the frequency of conflicts with parents.
Authoritarian	Thorough and rigid standards. Frequent punishments. One-way communication. Assertion of power.	Low self-esteem and self-confidence. Low personal autonomy and creativity. Low social competence. Heteronomous morality.
Permissive	No emotional involvement. Resignation in the educational task. Low motivation and effort capacity. Immaturity.	Low social competence. Low impulse control and aggressiveness. Low motivation.
Source: Adapted from Pinta et. al, 2019

On the other hand, the meaning of life is related to the purpose or meaning that a person gives to his or her life at different stages of development (Jiménez-Segura, 2021)it is the conception that a person has and that allows him/her to find meaning in his/her existence (Zamudio Flores, 2021). In the words of Frankl (Citado en Zelaya Guardado, 2023)the author of this concept, the meaning of life consists of the human being himself realizing his essence, that is to say, seeking and finding the purpose or purposes that guide his life and that endow his existence with meaning for himself.

Although the meaning of life is a concept that might seem more philosophical than psychological, it has been related through research to mental health; authors such as Zelaya (2023) have shown a relationship between both variables, affirming that people who have a greater sense of life tend to have less mental illness. It has even been stated that enriching a person's sense of life favors the development of adequate mental health (Zamudio Flores, 2021).

Costanza et al (2019) conducted a meta-analysis on sense of life and suicidal behavior, finding that sense of life is a determinant factor in the development of resilience; the analysis also revealed that sense of life functions as a protective factor against suicidal ideation and other psychological conditions. This study is based on the importance of studying any variable associated with integral well-being and mental health.

Method

Research design

This study has a quantitative approach due to the use of statistics for data analysis, the design is non-experimental, cross-sectional, with a correlational scope through which it is intended to investigate the relationship between parenting styles and the sense of life in adolescents, from the perspective of parents and children.

Participants

The sample is made up of 76 adolescents between 12 and 18 years of age, as well as their respective fathers, mothers or guardians, totaling 152 people. This sample was a simple non-probabilistic sample. The distribution of the sample was as follows: of the 76 adolescents, 53.9% were female while 46.1% were male; with respect to their schooling, 56.6% attended high school, 38.2% were in secondary school, and the remaining 5.2% were divided between those in higher education (2.6%) and those with no schooling (3.6%).

On the other hand, of the fathers, mothers or guardians, 81.6% were women and only 18.4% were men. 35.5% have completed high school, 39.9% have completed secondary school, 11.8% have a bachelor's degree, 9.2% have completed elementary school, 5.3% have a technical career, 1.3% have postgraduate studies, while 3.9% have no studies.

In order to be included in the study, the following criteria were established: that they would agree to participate (informed consent) and that they reside in the city of San Francisco de Campeche.

Results

For data collection, the PIL (Purpose In Life) test was used to measure the adolescents' sense of life; this instrument has 20 questions on a seven-point Guttman scale. The reliability analysis of the PIL reached a coefficient of 0.89. Similarly, the Parenting Styles and Dimensions Questionnaire (PSDQ) was administered to the adolescents in the version for sons and daughters, consisting of 62 items on a five-point Likert-type scale. For fathers, mothers or guardians, the PArenting Styles and Dimensions Questionnaire (PSDQ) was applied in the same way, but in the parents' version.

The PSDQ in both versions has the objective of determining has three dimensions: 1. Democratic or authoritative; 2. Authoritarian and 3. Permissive, so independent of the general reliability analysis, a reliability analysis was performed for each dimension, obtaining the following results:

Table 3 Reliability of the factors of the PSDQ questionnaire
Dimension	Reliability coefficient
Democratic	0.88
Authoritarian	0.78
Permissive	0.67

Regarding data analysis, descriptive statistics were used, specifically statistics such as the mean; on the other hand, derived from the normality analysis (p<0.05), it was determined that the sample did not fit the normal distribution, so the use of non-parametric tests such as Chi-square and Spearman's Rho was chosen.

Procedure

Data collection was carried out at the participants' homes, with prior informed consent. All the data collected in the tests were entered into a database of the SPSS program, where by applying various procedures for obtaining data, percentages, frequencies and means were obtained, in addition to the use of the Spearman square chi-square and Spearman.

For the scoring and interpretation of the Purpose In Life Test (PIL) a maximum total of 140 points was taken into account, we must consider that those who obtain scores below 90 would be in a state of existential emptiness. On the other hand, those who score between 90 and 105 show a lack of definition with respect to the meaning of life. And, finally, those who exceed 105 points would have a clear presence of goals and meaning in life.

As for the interpretation of the Parenting Styles and Dimensions Questionnaire (PSDQ), scores were obtained from the factors to later add up a total score, which was then converted into percentiles to determine the predominant parenting style.

Ethical considerations

All participants gave informed consent for inclusion before participating in the study. 

All procedures followed were in accordance with the ethical norms of the committee responsible for human experimentation of the Autonomous University of Campeche, Mexico; the national code of ethics for psychological research, national and local health law, and with the Declaration of Helsinki of 1975, revised in 2000. Informed consent was obtained from all subjects to be included in the study. 

Results

Based on the analysis of the data collected, the following results are presented.

Table 4 Descriptive statistics of the PIL sense of life instrument scores
	N	Minimum	Maximum	Media	Desv. Deviation
Sense of life	76	74.00	136.00	106.4605	13.62296

The mean Mean Meaning of Life score is equivalent to a score of 106.46, which is placed in the category of indefiniteness of purpose and meaning of life. A deviation of 13.62296 is shown, with a minimum range of 74 and a maximum of 136.

Table 5 Frequencies of sense of life levels
	Frequency	Percentage	Valid percentage	Cumulative percentage
Lack of sense	10	13.2	13.2	13.2
Indefinition of meaning	43	56.6	56.6	69.7
Presence of meaning	23	30.3	30.3	100.0

The data obtained from the PIL test indicate that the majority of the population (56.6%) is in indefinition of meaning, 30.3% in presence of meaning and only 13.2% in lack of meaning. Although the percentage of the population with a lack of meaning is lower compared to the other categories, it is still relevant that more than 10% of the sample seems to have no defined meaning in life.

Table 6 Predominant dimension of the guardian and PIL Category in which the child is located
		PIL category in which the responding child is located
		Lack of sense	Indefinition of meaning	Presence of meaning	Total
Predominant parenting style of the guardian	Count Democratic	3 7.5%	21 52.5%	16 40.0%	40 100%
	Count Authoritarian	5 37.5%	3 42.9%	6 21.4%	14 100%
	Count Permissive	2 9.1%	16 72.7%	4 18.2%	22 100.0%

Table 6 shows that those adolescents who fall into the lack of meaning category mostly have fathers, mothers or guardians with an authoritarian parenting style (37.5%); onthe other hand, those who fall into the category of lack of meaning (72.7%) tend to have been raised in permissive environments, while adolescents with a present and defined meaning of life come mostly from democratic environments (40%).

Table 7 Pearson's Chi-square
	Value	Gl	Asymptotic significance (bilateral).
Pearson's chi-square	10.936	4	.027

 

The Chi-square analysis revealed a significant relationship (p<0.05) between the parenting style of fathers, mothers or guardians and the presence, lack of definition or absence of meaning in life, a result that highlights the importance of parenting environments and styles in adolescents.

Table 8 Predominant dimension of the guardian and predominant dimension perceived by the child
		Predominant dimension of the adolescent
		Democratic	Authoritarian	Permissive	Total
Predominant parenting style of the guardian	Count Democratic	24 60%	7 17.5%	9 22.5%	40 100%
	Count Authoritarian	3 21.4%	7 50.0%	4 28.6%	14 100.0%
	Count Permissive	4 18.2%	15 68.2%	3 13.6%	22 100.0%

 

Table 8 shows that the democratic dimension exercised by the father has the highest score with a coincidence of 24 subjects who perceive the democratic parenting style in the same way, equivalent to 60%; on the other hand, within the authoritarian dimension exercised by the father, there is a coincidence of 7 subjects who perceive the authoritarian parenting style in the same way, equivalent to 50%; finally, the permissive dimension exercised by the father obtains a score of 68.2%, corresponding to 15 subjects who perceive an authoritarian parenting style.

Table 9 Pearson's Chi-Square Test
	Value	Gl	Asymptotic significance (bilateral).
Pearson's chi-square	18.838	4	.001

A bilateral significance of. 001 that at a significance level of 0.05, it is concluded that the association between the variables of predominant dimension of the tutor and predominant dimension perceived by the child is statistically significant.

Table 10 

Child's PIL score and parenting style and dimension category

		Sense of life	Democratic	Authoritarian	Permissive
Sense of life	R	1.000	.272*
	P		.017
Democratic	R	.272*	1.000	-.212**
	P	.017		.009
Authoritarian	R		-.212**	1.000	.674**
	P		.009		.000
Permissive	R			.674**	1.000
	P			.000

Table 10 shows that there is a significant correlation between the sense of life measured through the PIL and the democratic parenting style (p<0.05), this relationship is positive, so that in the presence of democratic parenting styles there is a greater sense of life.

Discussion and conclusions

Finally, the conclusions of the article will be presented in a last section, followed by the main conclusions. Where appropriate, limitations and proposals for continuity will be included. The results of the study revealed a predominance of indefiniteness of meaning in adolescents, a predominance that amounted to more than 50% of the total sample; these results are in agreement with the study conducted by Pérez et al. (Pérez et al., 2021) who report average levels of sense of life in the adolescent population; likewise, Sevilla-Santo et al. (2021) who conducted a study in 12 high schools in the state of Yucatán, Mexico (which borders the state from which the sample of the present study is taken) found in all schools average levels of sense of life or, as they call it in their study, uncertainty in the sense of life. On the other hand, studies conducted during the pandemic, such as that of Vergara et al. (2021) found in university population levels of sense of life that tend more towards the fullness of meaning and inner fulfillment, De Castro and Gonzalez (2017) state that what ultimately defines the human being is the sense to which they guide their intentions, actions and perceptions; from the relationship established with the environment and with themselves; therefore, the elevated levels of sense of life reported by Vergara et al (2021) may be due precisely to the context of the pandemic, a context that led to spaces for introspection and the possibility of performing activities that previously could not be performed due to the various activities of daily life. 

There seems to be a tendency towards the predominance of the democratic parenting style in the research conducted in the Latino population; in the present study it was found that the style with the highest frequency was precisely the democratic parenting style, coinciding with research such as that conducted by Pinta et al. (2019) in Ecuador, a study with which the order of frequency of each style coincides, with democratic predominating, followed by permissive and ending with authoritarian; it also agrees with the study by Arias and Cáceres (2021) in Peru and Padrós (2020) as well as Apodaca et al. (2022) in Mexico.

One of the main findings was the relationship between the democratic parenting style and the sense of life, this parenting style is characterized by a high affective response (García & Peraltilla, 2019) combined with good family communication and a concern for emotional stability (Tenempaguay-Solís & Martínez-Yacelga, 2021); although there are no studies that directly relate parenting styles with the sense of life, Córdova et al. (2022) were able to associate parenting behaviors that combine affection and demand (characteristics of the democratic style) with greater resilience and quality of life in children; similarly, Borja (2020) associated the democratic parenting style with better stress coping strategies; while Pinta et al. (2019) report a greater development of emotional competencies in children who are immersed in families where the democratic style predominates. As Vega (2020) mentions, parenting style is closely related to emotional, affective, social and even academic areas.

We conclude that there is a statistically significant relationship between parenting styles and sense of life, with democratic parenting being mainly related to higher levels of sense of life in young people.

However, in spite of the predominance of democratic styles, the reality is that most young people are located at levels of meaning in life that categorize them as undefined or lacking in meaning. 

The relevance of parenting in the integral health of young people is highlighted.

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