Effects of Parental Pressure on a Student’s Performance

Tordesillas, Ma. Alyssa T.

alyssuperb@gmail.com

Bachelor of Science in Accountancy

First Semester

December 6, 2019
 Effects of Parental Pressure on a Student’s Performance
Bachelor of Science in Accountancy

Topic:

This paper will discuss how a student can be affected. This paper will examine both the

positive and negative sides of how parental pressure can affect a student and why parents give

pressure to their children. It will help parents understand the possible consequences of their

chosen actions regarding to parental pressure.

Purpose/ Introduction:

Even before, parental pressure has been there and it has not been always easily

recognized. It occurs when parents put too much tension on their child in hopes for them to

exceed. Every parent wants the best for their children. Our parents are the people who helped us

become who we are today, and they have their own vision for us in the future. They want their

children to be secured in the future and that is one of the reasons why they send their kids to the

best schools. They also want their kids to be successful to the point where some parents opt to

choose careers for them. Parents play a big role in shaping who they are raising, and this can

affect the decision-making, way of thinking, and life decisions and choices of their children. The

purpose of this paper is to make parents be informed of the effects of their actions such as

parental pressure and help them evaluate themselves in doing the proper action or way of

motivating their children. Although some may find parental pressure as a good way of

motivation, some people, may find it whether it is distressful to students or not.

 Effects of Parental Pressure on a Student’s Performance
Bachelor of Science in Accountancy

Reasons for Parental Pressure

According to the research conducted by Hussain and Irfan (2014), there are five main

reasons why Parental Pressure occurs. Firstly, most of the students have their parents’ support in

completing their education financially. Therefore, making them think that the investment they

supported their children’s education with must have something in return for them. Parents think

that their children are their biggest investment. Secondly, Parents are given high respect and are

greatly appreciated in terms of the achievement of their child. In order to attain better social

respect and position in society, parents expect their children to do better performance from

others. Highly educated people are preferred. Thirdly, many students experience parental

pressure due to the achievements of their family members like siblings, cousins, or even friends

of the family. Parents pressure their children and make them do better than the high achievers of

the family, making it a hard target for them. Fourthly, for scholarships and subsidies. For parents

who cannot bear the expenses of their child’s education, they pressure their children to get

scholarships. Lastly is for their parent’s future. Some parents have a mindset that their child will

take extra care of them when they become weak and old if they provide better education to their

child and have high grades. They think that it will only happen if their child will become

financially stable and successful in life so, they pressurize them to achieve higher status as early

as they can.
 Effects of Parental Pressure on a Student’s Performance
Bachelor of Science in Accountancy

Positive Effects of Parental Pressure

According to Lupton (1983), first, the people who are high achievers that experienced

parental pressure resulting belongs to a higher socio-economic status than average or those who

had lower achievements. This is the result of the efficient pressure that the parents brought to

their child. The pressure was looked as a better learning environment to children. Second, some

students who experiences parental pressure tends to keep their mindset that they have to study

more in order to avoid embarrassment and disappointment from their parents. Third, these

students, tries hard to maintain their grades high or make their grades higher because they think

that it is a simple way of paying back.

Negative Effects of Parental Pressure

In the study conducted by Edgerton and Schaefer (1985), it shows that bad effects in a

student’s well-being and performance are caused by excessive parental pressure. In the study

they made, it shows that parents want their kids to excel, actively participate and achieve higher

in school. First, it reveals that students can have anxiety because of parental pressure. A feeling

of hopelessness, discourage, fear of disappointments, anger, shame, and loss of concentration are

some of the mental and emotional symptoms of anxiety (Hancock, 2001). Second, students can

feel a lot of distress. Stress depends on a stressor or a person or anything that provokes the
 Effects of Parental Pressure on a Student’s Performance
Bachelor of Science in Accountancy

adaptability, body and mentality of an individual. Some physiological symptoms of stress like

headache is due to mental or work overload. (Lan, 2003). Third, students can experience verbal

and physical abuse. Parental pressure is shown in different ways. According to Fogel and Melson

(1988), there are different ways of parenting. Some parents express their expectations, wishes,

and aspirations to their children verbally while other parents physically punish their children if

their expectations are not met, and some silently shows their disappointments.

Parental Involvement

As defined by Leff and Hoye (2003), parental pressure is a behavior recognized by a

child as designating expectations of unreachable heights of achievements. They also explained

the contrast of it which is parental support as significant on the cognizance of a child, and not the

act of intention. The association of parents falls in two categories. When there is a positive effect

of parental pressure to a student, it is viewed as a support, and when the effect is negative, it is

viewed as pressure. (Anderson 2003)

According to Reynolds and Pemberton (2001), there is a foundational distinction between

educational aspiration and educational expectations, where one desires to be achieved and one

rationally expects to achieve. Aspiration is having hope in achieving something. According to

Marjoribanks (1998), the visionary values called aspirations do not automatically mirror socio-

economic realities that may be pertinent to the future.

 Effects of Parental Pressure on a Student’s Performance
Bachelor of Science in Accountancy

Conclusion:

Student’s well-being and performance in school is clearly affected by the parental

pressure they experience. There are effects that are helpful in motivating some students, and

there is also a clear effect of distress to some. There are some reasons why parents pressure their

kids and some of these are: being their children as return on their investments, social respect,

family members’ achievements, scholarships, and for their own future. There are also positive

effects of parental pressure like students seeing it as motivation to do better in school and to be

able to give back to their parents in a simple way. Parental pressure is also associated with some

negative effects like anxiety, distress, and verbal and physical abuse. There are two categories of

parental involvement: support that causes positive outcome and pressure that causes negative

outcomes. Although parental pressure has positive effects, the negative effects are dominant. It is

better to support children and motivate them in good ways instead of pressurizing them and

expecting a lot to the point that it destabilizes their mental, physical, and psychological health.

No. of Words: 1175

 Effects of Parental Pressure on a Student’s Performance
Bachelor of Science in Accountancy

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 Effects of Parental Pressure on a Student’s Performance
Bachelor of Science in Accountancy

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