BECE. Newsletter 

Vol.19, No.2, 2025, BECE 1955 

 

 

 

 

The Impact of the Parenting Style on Adolescent Em-

pathetic Ability: A Comparative Analysis Based on 

Data from SSES 2019 

By Li, Y., Tang, Y., & Huang, Z. 
Correspondence to: Zhongjing Huang, East China Normal University, China. E-

mail: zjhuang@dedu.ecnu.edu.cn  

EVELOPING social and emotional skills in citizens plays a vital role in 

promoting their democratic participation in societal construction. Cur-

rently, there is a dearth of cross-cultural studies on the relationship between 

adolescent empathy and parenting styles. Drawing on data of American, Ca-

nadian, South Korean, and Chinese students from SSES 2019, this article 

gives overviews of adolescent empathetic ability in two cultural circles, 

North American (Western) and East Asian (Eastern), and conducts a com-

parative analysis, using the method of descriptive statistics. It also explores 

the cultural differences in the relationship between the parenting style and 

adolescent empathetic ability through linear regression. 

Research Findings: 

 In all regions chosen, girls, on average, had higher levels of empa-

thy than boys.  There were greater gender differences in empathy 

ability among North American adolescents than among East Asian 

ones. 

 East Asian adolescents had higher levels of empathy, on average, 

than their North American counterparts, exhibiting more promi-

nent age differences. 

 Understanding-listening parenting had a significantly positive im-

pact on empathy ability of adolescents in both Eastern and Western 

cultural circles, with the impact from mothers being more signifi-

cant. 

 Harsh-punitive parenting had varied, significant impacts on empa-

thy ability of adolescents from the East Asian cultural circle, but 

with insignificant impacts on that of North American teenagers. 

The research findings highlight the influence of the cultural back-

ground on empathetic ability development in adolescents, implying the posi-

tive role of the Confucian tradition in the East Asian cultural circle, which 

has an exceptional emphasis on filial piety, in fostering empathy in adoles-

cents. Therefore, it is important to consider the locally distinctive cultural 

D 

mailto:zjhuang@dedu.ecnu.edu.cn


 

Vol.19, No.2, 2025, BECE 1956 

features in developing empathy in adolescents, rather than blindly adopting 

foreign parenting styles. 

 

 
Source: Journal of Comparative Education, 2025; 2025(1):100-112.