Predictors of the Moral Behavior among Early Adolescents
Keywords:
Moral behavior, adolescents, self-esteem, parenting style, game addictionAbstract
Addressing moral characteristics and various factors affecting the inculcation of moral behavior in
early adolescents is significant. This study aimed to examine the predictors of moral behavior among early
adolescents. 121 participants were recruited using stratified random sampling from junior high school students
in extended opportunity schools in Chonburi province. The research instrument was aself-administered
questionnaire which consisted of 1) Demographic data, 2) Self-esteem, 3) Parenting styles, 4) Game addiction
screening test, and 5) Moral behavior. The Cronbach's alpha reliabilities were 0.91, 0.85, 0.88 and 0.91
respectively. Descriptive statistics and stepwise multiple regression were used for data analysis.
The results revealed that the mean score of moral behavior was at a moderate level ( = 3.36, SD = 0.63).
Predictors were authoritative parenting style, self-esteem and internet gaming addiction, which together
accounted for 40.1 % of the variance in moral character (p < 0.001). The strongest predictor was authoritative
parenting style (β = 2.308, p < 0.001), followed by self-esteem (β = 0.975, p = 0.010) and internet gaming
addiction (β = - 0.321, p = 0.016).
These findings suggest that the tailored intervention program should be emphasized by promoting an
authoritative parenting style and self-esteem, and ways to preventinternet gaming addiction to cultivate better
moral behavior in early adolescents.
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