An investigation of perceived parenting styles, adverse childhood experiences and self-esteem as predictors of university students' attitudes toward gender

This study aims to examine university students' attitudes toward gender roles. In line with this objective, it was investigated whether perceived parental attitudes, self-esteem, and adverse childhood experiences serve as predictors of attitudes toward gender roles, and whether these attitudes significantly differ according to demographic variables. Designed within the framework of the quantitative method, this study employed a relational survey model. The study population consisted of undergraduate students enrolled during the 2024–2025 academic year, and the sample comprised 741 undergraduate students. Data were collected using the "Personal Information Form" developed by the researcher, the "Gender Roles Attitude Scale," the "Two-Dimensional Self-Esteem Scale," and the "Shortened Perceived Parental Attitude Scale – Child Form." During the analysis process, independent samples t-tests, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), Pearson correlation, and multiple linear regression analysis were conducted. The findings revealed that adverse childhood experiences and perceived parental attitudes are significant predictors of attitudes toward gender roles and together account for 6.4% of the variance. Additionally, attitudes toward gender roles differed significantly based on gender and the faculty in which students were enrolled, while no significant differences were observed with respect to number of siblings, year of study or parental marital status. Finally, the results obtained within the framework of the research findings were interpreted in relation to previous studies, and recommendations were presented accordingly.