The different roles of affective and cognitive empathy in the relationship between parental control and aggressive behavior

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However, little research focusing on the effects of empathy in the relation between parental control and aggressive behavior. This study concentrated on the effects that various components of empathy play in the parental control-empathy-aggressive behavior link and attempts to determine whether there are differences in the mediating roles empathy plays in the relationships between aggressive behavior and maternal and paternal control. Participants included 994 offenders who completed the parenting style scale, aggressive behavior scale and the interpersonal reactivity index. The moderated mediating model analysis results demonstrate that empathy fully mediates the association between maternal control and aggressive behavior, with cognitive empathy acting as a negative predictor and the negative component of affective empathy acting as a positive predictor. Empathy plays a partially mediated role between paternal control and aggressive behavior, with the negative component of affective empathy having a positive predictive effect. Collectively, these results highlight the importance of empathy as a mediating factor, and more attention should be paid to the other possible moderating effects of empathy on parenting styles. Aggressive behavior parental control affective empathy cognitive empathy offenders Figures Figure 1 Figure 2 Introduction Aggressive behavior generally defined as “any behavior directed at another person with the proximate purpose of causing injury.” (Winter et al., 2017 ). Aggressive behavior toward someone else is a severe social problem and is especially common among offenders (Williams et al., 2018 ). Many researches have concluded that aggressive behavior has a number of significant social and economic consequences for society (Berger & Rodkin, 2012 ). The deficits in social comprehension have also been frequently suggested as a central mechanism for aggressive behavior (Lovett & Sheffield, 2007 ; Winter et al., 2017 ). More and more studies have shown that aggressive behavior is closely related to social relationships and plays a functional role in peer ecology (Berger et al., 2015 ). The causes of aggressive behavior are assumed to be diverse, but ample research evidence consistently shows that psychological control, such as parental control, plays an important predictive role for aggressive behavior of adolescent (Cui et al., 2014 ; Tian et al., 2019 ). Many parents struggle to provide a balance between support and control for their children (Garcia & Serra, 2019 ). Nevertheless, many investigators have identified that certain formats of control have significantly association with differential development results (Cui et al., 2014 ). Higher parental control has been proven to be more common among the population of offenders (Wang et al., 2021 ). Previous researches have shown that parental control is correlated with serious psychological problems such as anxieties, autism and depressive symptoms and has also been shown to be associated with antisocial behavior or aggressive behaviors (Cui et al., 2014 ; Tian et al., 2019 ). Impairments in societal functioning have also been related to some psychiatric disorders and situations that are characterized by aggressive behavior (Winter et al., 2017 ). Earlier studies also suggested that parental control has a more significant association with empathy than parental care and encouragement among offenders (Garcia & Serra, 2019 ; Wang et al., 2021 ). The Mediating Role of Empathy in the Parental Control-Empathy-Aggressive Behavior Link Empathy is a key factor in the evolution of social function and has been defined “an ability to experience the world from the perspective of others, to perceive the feelings of others” (Engen & Singer, 2013 ). Gandhi et al. ( 2021 ) claimed that empathy is an important mediating factor, and empathy has been demonstrated to play an important mediating role in many structural equation modeling (SEM) models (Gandhi et al., 2021 ). Poor empathy is a potential cause of impaired social functioning, and many studies reported that empathy has relationship with aggressive behavior, particularly among the population of male offenders (van Zonneveld et al., 2017 ). Affective empathy is broadly described as the ability of a person to experience the feelings of another individual and is considered as the earliest phylogenetic system of empathy. Personal distress (PD) and empathic concern (EC) are both emotional systems that support affective empathy and have negative and positive consequences, separately (Schreiter et al., 2013 ). While Cognitive empathy is widely defined as the ability of understanding another individuals' mental state. Perspective-taking (PT) has been widely characterized as a classic form of cognitive empathy and a measure of an individual's ability to cognitive transposition, thus adopt their psychological perspectives. (Schreiter et al., 2013 ; Smallbone et al., 2003 ). Affective processes and cognitive processes support the formation of empathic responses and may play different effects in association with different aggressive behaviors (Jiang et al., 2019 ). Previous studies have concluded that affective empathy and cognitive empathy are correlated with aggressive behavior, and they have been proven to have help predict aggressive behavior (Jiang et al., 2019 ; Yeo et al., 2011 ). The conclusion of previous studies confirmed that parental control has a greater relationship with the empathy of offenders than other parental factors (Garcia & Serra, 2019 ; Wang et al., 2021 ). One research found that parental control is related to an increasing trend in PD as a negative component of affective empathy but has no significant association with EC (Fei et al., 2021 ). Affective empathy has been thought to have a positive association with aggressive behaviors in previous studies, especially among offenders (Lovett & Sheffield, 2007 ). However, the impact of affective empathy on the association of parental control with aggressive behavior has not yet received much attention. When we switch our perspective to cognitive empathy which have been confirmed that parental control is related to cognitive empathy, parental control have a negative relation with the cognitive empathy of offenders, and maternal control is the more significant influence (Asano et al., 2016 ; McElroy & Rodriguez, 2008 ; Wang et al., 2021 ). Other researches have concluded that there is no association between paternal control and cognitive empathy (McElroy & Rodriguez, 2008 ). Debate continues about the the relationship of parental control and cognitive empathy, previous studies have also concluded that parental control may be has a positively relationship with cognitive empathy, depending largely on the degree of control (Asano et al., 2016 ). Cognitive empathy has been confirmed to have relation with aggressive behavior by many previous studies (Jiang et al., 2019 ; Yeo et al., 2011 ). Most studies found that cognitive empathy is negatively associated with aggressive behavior, especially among offenders. However, much of the research up to now of these relationships have not dealt with the mediating role. In consideration of the combined model of affective and cognition processes in the processes of social information, this study paid more attention to the various roles that the components of empathy play with in the parental control-empathy-aggressive behavior relationship and identifies the steps for this to occur in a sample of Chinese male offenders. This Study Few studies have focused on the effects of empathy in the relation between parental control and aggressive behavior. Although many researches have assumed that empathy is significantly related to the process of aggressive behavior, some researchers believe that different components of empathy would play different roles in the relation between parental control and aggressive behavior (Jiang et al., 2019 ; Yeo et al., 2011 ). Until now, it is complicated to identify the particular role of the components of empathy in the association between parental control and aggression and the steps involved. In the initial study of the mediating effects of affective and cognitive empathy, we developed a mediation model within which affective and cognitive empathy mediates both the mediated and direct pathways. In this study, parental control was hypothesized to has positively association with aggressive behavior and to have different associations with affective empathy and cognitive empathy. And then, we hypothesized that perceived parental control may have significantly relationship with offenders’ empathy, which in turn significantly influences offenders’ aggressive behavior. Moreover, affective empathy and cognitive empathy were expected to mediate the relationships between perceived parental control and offenders’ aggressive behavior. Furthermore, the pattern of the mediating roles of empathy in the relationship between paternal/maternal control and aggressive behavior were hypothesized to differ. Methods Participants The participants consisted of 994 male offenders who were drawn from a prison in Jiangsu Province. The age range is 17 to 67 years old (M = 39.93, SD = 8.76). Of the samples, 26.1% were only children. 37.9% of offenders were unmarried, 27.8% divorced, 1.2% widowed and 32.9% married. Of the participants, 13.6% graduated from primary school, 62.5% graduated from middle school, 17.2% graduated from high school, and 6.5% graduated from college. Procedure The subjects were recruited after consultation and planning by Soochow University, Suzhou Prison and Center for Disease Control and Prevention. The major recruiting method was to get prison officials to spread the word about this study and find volunteers. Every participant interviewed was conducted by a prison officer, who was not involved in persuading the prisoner to attend the interview. The participants were then interviewed privately by researchers trained by a psychology-related expert from Soochow University. Individual scores were not available for prison officers. In total, 1,324 offenders (66% of those in the prison), volunteered for the screening. All were certified and the complete scales were returned; However, three offenders were unable to fully complete the questionnaire and were excluded from the analysis. Finally, 994 offenders were selected because their caregivers were their parents. Ratings used for the research included only the information collected from self-reports, including the parenting style, aggressive behavior and empathy scales. Some scales have been designed to obtain relevant data, which can be provided by the authors upon request. Measures Parental control. The self-reported Parental Bonding Instrument (PBI) was used to assess the parental control. The PBI is a scale which was used to measure individuals' perspectives of their experienced parenting styles during childhood and adolescence (up to age 16) (Parker et al., 1979 ). Previous theoretical studies have shown that parental control, which generally refers to excessive intervention and lower levels of care for children, has a significant effect on the physical and mental development of individuals, especially mental health disorders. This scale contains two subscales, the maternal subscale (PBI-M) and the paternal subscale (PBI-F), both of which contain 23 items, and was used to measure the three factors of parenting style: caring, encouragement and control. The 4-point Likert scale was used: "0" meant "very inconsistent", "1" meant "relatively inconsistent", "2" meant "fairly consistent", and "3" meant "very consistent". In this study, Cronbach's alpha coefficients of PBI-F was o.821 and Cronbach's alpha coefficients of PBI-M was 0.776. Aggressive behavior. The Buss & Perry Aggression Questionnaire (AQ-CV) was used to assess the aggressive behavior and this study used the Chinese version. Buss and Perry’s (1992) AQ is one of the highest reliability self-report measures for the measurement of aggression. Many Chinese scholars have translated and modified this scale, verified its reliability and validity in many populations, and formed a questionnaire version that is more suitable for Chinese people - the AQ-CV (An et al., 2010 ). There are 30 items in the revised AQ-CV and five subscales: verbal aggression, physical aggression, anger, hostility and self-directed aggression. Every item was scored on a 5-point Likert scoring scale: "1" meant "does not conform at all", "2" meant "does not conform well", "3" meant "generally conforms", "4" meant "match", and "5" meant "perfectly fits". In addition, higher scores indicate higher levels of aggression. The AQ-CV’s Cronbach’s alpha coefficient in this research was 0.952. Empathy. The Interpersonal Response Index questionnaire (IRI) was used to assess empathy. The IRI is a 22-item self-report questionnaire designed to measure the specific results of distinguishing between the two components of empathy (Davis, 1983 ). So far, this is the only proven and published multi-dimensional empathy assessment. Empathy in a broad sense involves one person's response to observing another's experience. IRI describes four independent dimensions of empathy that assess outcomes related to an individual's self-esteem, social functioning, emotional functioning, and sensitivity to others. The positive and negative components of affective empathy were measured by subscale EC and PD respectively, while cognitive empathy was measured by subscale PT. More particularly, the EC subscale is designed to assess an individual's ability to generate compassion, warmth and attention from the experiences of other individuals, while the PD subscale is designed to measure an individual's subjective feelings about the negative aspects of observing the pain and suffering endured by others. The PT subscale assesses an individual's ability to make cognitive transitions. The Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of the IRI in this study was 0.862. Data Analysis First of all, SAS 9.4 was used for data analysis in this study. Descriptive analysis was performed for each variable and linear correlation analysis was used to explain the correlation between variables. Then, we used the PROCESS macro in SPSS version 21.0 to examine the associations between perceived parental control and aggressive behavior, and the moderating role of affective and cognitive empathy in this study. A total of 5000 bootstrap samples were extracted to obtain the robust standard error and bootstrap confidence interval of parameter estimation. The result is statistically significant when the confidence interval does not include 0. A p-value < .05 was considered statistically significant. Results Sociodemographic, Parental Control, Aggressive Behavior and Empathy Characteristics The binary analyses of parental control, aggressive behavior, the empathy scale scores and sociodemographic characteristics were shown in Table 1 . These results indicated that the higher the education level of the offender, the lower the parental control they experienced ( F = 3.38, p < .05). Offenders who had higher education and more children showed higher aggressive behavior than offenders with lower education and fewer children ( F = 3.66, p < .05; F = 4.04, p < .01). Offenders with higher education have higher level of perspective taking and empathic concern, as well as lower level of personal distress than offenders with lower education ( F = 6.27, p < .01; F = 8.05, p < .001; F = 2.98, p < .05). Moreover, offenders who had a sibling showed higher empathic concern than those who did not ( t = 2.01, p < .05). The offenders who were single for any reason showed lower empathic concern ( F = 5.51, p < .001) (Table 1 ). There were no other differences according to sociodemographic characteristics. Table 1 Characteristics of parental control, aggressive behavior and empathy among offenders by demographic factors. ( n = 994) n Maternal control Paternal control Aggressive behavior Perspective taking Empathic concern Personal distress Age 1.73 2.27 1.98 0.62 0.05 0.46 <30 107 6.26 ± 2.42 6.57 ± 2.66 62.67 ± 21.69 8.44 ± 4.07 16.26 ± 3.35 5.23 ± 3.99 30–39 392 5.81 ± 2.43 5.89 ± 2.58 59.78 ± 21.87 8.16 ± 3.89 16.36 ± 3.49 4.95 ± 4.02 40–49 341 5.71 ± 2.42 5.89 ± 2.47 59.74 ± 19.72 7.89 ± 3.86 16.46 ± 3.56 5.27 ± 4.03 ≥ 50 154 5.60 ± 2.51 5.92 ± 2.42 56.36 ± 21.71 8.12 ± 3.65 16.41 ± 3.44 5.03 ± 3.52 Only child 1.49 0.82 1.19 1.15 2.01* 0.69 Yes 260 5.99 ± 2.46 6.08 ± 2.65 58.21 ± 21.88 8.33 ± 3.87 16.03 ± 3.55 4.96 ± 3.85 No 734 5.73 ± 2.43 5.93 ± 2.49 60.02 ± 20.91 8.01 ± 3.86 16.53 ± 3.46 5.15 ± 3.98 Education 1.54 3.38* 3.66* 6.27** 8.05*** 2.98* Primary school and below 136 5.91 ± 2.74 6.07 ± 2.59 59.53 ± 20.76 7.79 ± 4.07 15.49 ± 3.52 5.72 ± 3.80 Junior high school 622 5.86 ± 2.34 6.11 ± 2.42 61.00 ± 21.79 7.82 ± 3.65 16.30 ± 3.39 5.19 ± 4.00 High school 171 5.65 ± 2.49 5.65 ± 2.65 56.09 ± 19.14 8.74 ± 4.22 17.02 ± 3.67 4.51 ± 3.72 College and above 65 5.26 ± 2.57 5.25 ± 3.02 54.74 ± 19.24 9.59 ± 3.93 17.66 ± 3.19 4.51 ± 4.11 Married state 1.05 1.78 0.17 0.16 5.51*** 1.22 Unmarried 377 5.75 ± 2.38 6.06 ± 2.63 59.79 ± 21.82 8.00 ± 3.92 16.19 ± 3.40 4.84 ± 3.92 Divorced 276 5.88 ± 2.47 6.09 ± 2.48 59.15 ± 21.09 8.10 ± 3.78 16.06 ± 3.37 5.28 ± 4.00 Widowers 13 6.85 ± 1.77 6.74 ± 2.32 63.00 ± 28.98 7.85 ± 2.94 14.84 ± 2.70 6.31 ± 3.59 Married 328 5.73 ± 2.50 5.73 ± 2.47 59.46 ± 20.10 8.20 ± 3.82 17.00 ± 3.63 5.21 ± 3.94 Number of children 1.06 1.58 4.04** 2.01 0.3 1.58 0 305 5.7 ± 2.49 5.98 ± 2.75 60.65 ± 22.25 7.96 ± 3.80 16.25 ± 3.23 4.95 ± 3.98 1 487 5.78 ± 2.30 5.89 ± 2.39 57.98 ± 20.00 8.18 ± 3.97 16.46 ± 3.60 4.99 ± 3.89 2 161 5.89 ± 2.50 6.29 ± 2.52 59.74 ± 20.53 8.39 ± 3.74 16.51 ± 3.64 5.46 ± 3.83 ≥ 3 41 6.39 ± 3.30 5.46 ± 2.46 60.17 ± 25.50 6.83 ± 3.25 16.44 ± 3.36 6.09 ± 4.62 Note. * p < .05, ** p < .01, *** p < .001. ------------------------------------------------------- Please insert Table 1 here ------------------------------------------------------- Correlations Among Variables The correlations of maternal control, paternal control, aggressive behavior and empathy among offenders were shown in Table 2 . These results indicated that the maternal control was positively related to aggressive behavior, perspective taking and personal distress, while was negatively associated with empathic concern. Paternal control has a positively relationship with aggressive behavior and personal distress, while has negatively relationship with empathic concern. In addition, PT was positively associated with aggressive behavior, while EC was negatively related to aggressive behavior. Table 2 Linear correlations among the study variables. ( n = 994) 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 1. Maternal Control 1 2. Paternal Control 0.54*** 1 3. Aggressive behavior 0.18*** 0.28*** 1 4. PT 0.08* 0.05 0.08* 1 5. EC -0.18*** -0.21*** -0.01 0.37*** 1 6. PD 0.29*** 0.30*** 0.47*** 0.32*** -0.02 1 Note. PT = perspective-taking, EC = empathic concern, PD = personal distress. * p < .05, *** p < .001 ------------------------------------------------------- Please insert Table 2 here ------------------------------------------------------- The Mediating Effect of Empathy on the Maternal Control-Aggressive Behavior Link The mediation results of empathy were shown in Table 3 and Fig. 1 . These results showed that in the absence of empathy, the total effect of maternal control on aggressive behavior was significant (β = 1.58, t = 5.85, p < .001). Maternal control predicted PT and PD positively. Moreover, the results we could observed as following when empathy as a mediator in the analysis. The associations of maternal control with PT ( β = 0.12, t = 2.46, p < .05), EC (β = -0.26, t = -5.92, p < .001 ) and PD ( β = 0.46, t = 9.53, p <. 001 ) were significant, PT ( β = -0.47, t = -2.70, p < .01 ) and PD ( β = 2.58, t = 15.60, p < .001 ) could still predict aggressive behavior. Bootstrapping showed that empathy could explain the relationship between maternal control and aggressive behavior through PT ( indirect effect = -0.07, 95% CI = -0.02–0.002 ) and PD ( indirect effect = 0.14, 95% CI = 0.11–0.18 ). Table 3 The mediating effect of empathy with aggressive behavior as the dependent variable. ( n = 994) Model 1 (Aggressive behavior) Model 2 (PT) Model 3 (EC) Model 4 (PD) Model 5 (Aggressive behavior) Variable β t β t β t β t β t Maternal Control 1.58 5.85*** 0.12 2.46* -0.26 -5.92*** 0.46 9.53*** 0.49 1.90 PT -0.47 -2.70*** EC 0.21 1.14 PD 2.58 15.60*** R 2 0.03 0.01 0.03 0.08 0.23 F 34.27*** 6.07* 35.06*** 90.90*** 73.17*** Paternal Control 2.30 9.04*** 0.08 1.73 -0.29 -6.77*** 0.47 9.88*** 1.31 5.32** PT -0.50 2.85 EC 0.35 1.90 PD 2.42 14.77*** R 2 0.08 0.03 0.04 0.09 0.25 F 81.70*** 2.98 45.77*** 97.71*** 81.15*** Note. PT = perspective taking, PD = personal distress, EC = empathic concern. * p < .05, ** p < .01, *** p < .001. ------------------------------------------------------- Please insert Table 3 here ------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------- Please insert Fig. 1 here ------------------------------------------------------- The Mediating Effect of Empathy on the Paternal Control-Aggressive Behavior Link The mediation results of empathy are shown in Table 3 and Fig. 2 . As expected, in the absence of empathy, the total of paternal control on aggressive behavior was significant ( β = 2.30, t = 9.04, p < .001 ). Paternal control predicted PD positively. Moreover, the results we could observed as following when empathy as a mediator in the analysis. Paternal control had significant effects on EC ( β = -0.29, t = -6.77, p < .001 ) and PD ( β = 0.47, t = 9.88, p < .001 ), PD ( β = 2.42, t = 14.77, p < .001 ) could still predict aggressive behavior. Bootstrapping shows that empathy could explain the correlation between maternal control and aggressive behavior through PD (indirect effect = 0.05, 95% CI = 0.04–0.07). ------------------------------------------------------- Please insert Fig. 2 here ------------------------------------------------------- Discussion In order to find the various roles played by the components of empathy in the parental control-empathy-aggressive behavior link, accompanying the possible steps, we developed two mediation models with the aim of investigating the moderating role of cognitive and affective empathy. These results provide a renewed idea for understanding the complex correlations between parental control and aggressive behavior. We found that the higher education offenders have, the lower the paternal control and aggressive behavior, which was consistent with that conclusion by previous researches, and parents were obviously more tolerant of children with better academic performance and higher education in the Chinese educational environment (Yang & Zhao, 2020 ). Moreover, higher education predicts a better education in mind and character, which greatly reduces the risk of aggressive behavior. In our study, offenders with higher levels of education showed higher cognitive empathy and affective empathy. Comparison of the findings with those of other studies confirms that individuals with higher levels of education have a higher level of empathy, with a greater awareness of things, ability to feel the emotions of others, and ability to detoxify negative feelings (Holmes et al., 2019 ). Maternal and paternal control have the same pattern of relationship with affective empathy, and the results are consistent with those of previous studies. Maternal control has a positive relationship with cognitive empathy, but paternal control has no relationship with it (Fei et al., 2021 ). Parental control had a negative relationship with the positive component of affective empathy but had a positive relationship with the negative component of affective empathy. Cognitive empathy and the negative component of affective empathy have positive associations with aggressive behavior. The results of structural equation models indicate that empathy fully mediates the association between maternal control and aggressive behavior, with cognitive empathy acting as a negative predictor and the negative component of affective empathy acting as a positive predictor. Many studies have confirmed that parental control has a positive association with aggressive behavior; conversely, care and encouragement are more likely to reduce the risk of aggression (Cui et al., 2014 ; Tian et al., 2019 ). A possible reason for our findings is that maternal parenting style had a more significant impact on the offender's family rearing environment than paternal parenting style, which is consistent with previous research findings (Yang & Zhao, 2020 ). This suggests that we should pay more attention to the maternal component of parenting styles. Empathy plays a partially mediated role between father control and aggressive behavior, with cognitive empathy having no predictive effect and the negative component of affective empathy having a positive predictive effect. The relationships between parental control with aggressive behavior and empathy were consistent with our hypothesis. The Mediating Effect of Empathy on Maternal Control and Aggressive Behavior Consistent with our hypothesis, the results of analysis suggest that empathy fully mediates the association between maternal control and aggressive behavior, while affective and cognitive empathy both mediate the associations between perceived parental control and offenders’ aggressive behavior. We have suggested that empathy is an important explanatory mechanism for the mediating model. In particular, offenders with high levels of parental control are susceptible to have higher perspective-taking and personal distress scores, which in turn are associated with aggressive behavior. The present study confirmed previous researches that affective and cognitive empathy have opposite influences, and then personal distress is more associated than perspective taking in this study. In exception to the overall conclusions of the mediation role, every aspect of the model is worth noting. The findings of the first section of the mediation process (i.e., maternal control → empathy) suggest that maternal control has positive relationship with perspective taking and personal distress. The findings are inconsistent with those of previous studies, which suggest that maternal control was negatively related to perspective taking (McElroy & Rodriguez, 2008 ). Some studies have also concluded that maternal control has a positive relationship with perspective taking (Asano et al., 2016 ; Wang et al., 2021 ). The possible reason for the positive correlation between maternal control and cognitive empathy among offenders is that maternal control is more likely to pressure individuals to learn more and understand the thoughts of others, thus indirectly improving their cognitive empathy in a traditional Chinese family environment (Yang & Zhao, 2020 ). The relationship between maternal control and personal distress was consistent with conclusions of previous study (Wang et al., 2021 ). The higher negative component of affective empathy may lead individuals to suffer more emotional harm and pain. According to the second section of the mediation process (i.e., empathy → aggressive behavior), findings showed that perspective taking was negatively related to aggressive behavior, while personal distress was positively related to aggressive behavior. As previous studies have concluded, cognitive empathy has a negative relation with aggression, especially among offenders (Jiang et al., 2019 ; Yeo et al., 2011 ). Previous studies have concluded that affective empathy has a positive or negative relationship with aggressive behavior, while our findings confirmed that the negative component of affective empathy is positively related to aggressive behavior (Lovett & Sheffield, 2007 ). This finding suggests that personal distress (a negative component of affective empathy) plays a more important role in the association between affective empathy with aggressive behavior than empathic concern (a positive component of affective empathy). The Mediating Effect of Empathy on Paternal Control and Aggressive Behavior The findings of the structural equation models indicate that empathy partially mediates the association between paternal control and aggressive behavior, the results were consistent with our hypothesis. However, only affective empathy plays a mediating role between paternal control and offenders’ aggressive behavior. Offenders with high degrees of parental control are susceptible to report higher personal distress scores, which in turn are correlated with aggressive behavior. The first section of the mediation process (i.e., paternal control → empathy) recommended that paternal control is positively correlated with personal distress. Previous research also found that paternal control is associated with personal distress, although the association between maternal control and aggressive behavior is more significant (Tisak et al., 2021 ). The second section of the mediation process (i.e., empathy → aggressive behavior) showed that personal distress is positively associated with aggressive behavior. The findings were inconsistent with those of previous studies; the negative component of affective empathy was positively associated with aggressive behavior, while empathic concern (a positive component of affective empathy) was negatively related to aggressive behavior (Lovett & Sheffield, 2007 ). Offenders are individuals with antisocial behavior and violent tendencies, and studies have shown that empathic concern is low in this group (Smallbone et al., 2003 ). Thus, there is a more significant association between personal distress, a negative component of affective empathy, and aggressive behavior. Difference between the Mediating Roles of Empathy in the Association of Maternal Control and Paternal Control with Aggressive Behavior It is worth noting that the current study revealed that affective and cognitive empathy fully mediate the association between maternal control and aggressive behavior, and the direct effect was great. Only affective empathy partially moderated the association between paternal control and aggressive behavior, and the indirect effect was great too. The difference between the mediating roles of empathy in the relationships of maternal control and paternal control with aggressive behavior was consistent with our hypothesis. The main reason for our results may be that the maternal component of parenting style had a more significant effect on aggressive behavior than the paternal component. Many previous studies have concluded that the maternal parenting style has a greater association with the development of individuals (Tisak et al., 2021 ; Yang & Zhao, 2020 ). Notably, although only maternal control had a positive relation with cognitive empathy, it was positively associated with reduced aggressive behavior. Conclusions of this study also confirm that a certain degree of control has a positive relationship with individuals’ development (Shek et al., 2006 ). Meanwhile, the mediation of the negative component of affective empathy showed that parental control has a negative relationship with aggressive behavior. The most likely reason for the differential correlation between parental control and aggressive behavior is the degree of control. This was consistent with the conclusions of previous researches; moderate and mild control can promote good development, while too much control may place individuals on the wrong developmental trajectory and, in more serious cases, may trigger antisocial and aggressive behaviors (Cao et al., 2020 ; Shek et al., 2006 ). Limitations and Further Research Although this study has some different thoughts compared to the previous studies, there are still some limitations. First, we realize that the results of the questionnaire could not allow for causal conclusions for the time being; and then, future researches should consider to use an established laboratory program to examine the effects of empathy. Second, the study sample for this study was only male prisoners, and if gender moderates the relationship of concern is not clear. Previous studies have concluded that women have higher empathic ability than men, and subsequent researches hope to recruit individuals of different genders to participate (Toussaint & Webb, 2005 ). Finally, future studies should consider other groups, such as students at various stages or normal populations. The particular group of offender participant in this study were more likely to have experienced poor parental rearing styles in childhood and to have aggressive behaviors (Gilligan & Lee, 2005 ). Conclusion In conclusion, the main goal of the current study was to determine the relationship between perceived parental control and aggressive behavior via the mediating role of affective and cognitive empathy among offenders, especially about maternal control. Overall, these findings have a number of important implications for future practice and help to contribute to an understanding of how parental bonding relates to offenders’ aggressive behavior, which can serve as a theoretical basis for constructing a sound social environment and promoting the development of reducing aggressive behavior, which in turn, reduce violent conflict and crime rates. Declarations Ethical approval Our research was approved by the Ethics Committee of Soochow University for research conducted with human subjects. The ethics declaration in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki. The participants were informed of the purposes and procedures before the study commenced. The survey data were collected only after informed consent was obtained from the participants. Availability of supporting data The datasets generated during and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request. Declaration of Competing Interest We declare that they have no conflict of interest. Funding This work was supported by the MOE (Ministry of Education in China) Project of Humanities and Social Sciences [grant number 22YJCZH243] and the Chinese Government Scholarship of China Scholarship Council [grant number 202106920027] and the Suzhou Science and Technology Healthcare Strengthening Project [grant number QNXM2024087]. Consent for publication Consent for publication was obtained from the participants. CRediT authorship contribution statement Shaishai Wang : Visualization, Formal analysis, Writing - original draft, Writing - review & editing. Bo Dong : Visualization, Formal analysis, Writing - original draft, Writing - review & editing. Xinyang Wang : Writing - review & editing. Yiran Geng : Writing - review & editing. Wenjing Fei : Writing - review & editing. Jiachun Yu : Writing - review & editing. Ming Zhang : Conceptualization, Visualization, Writing - review & editing, Validation, Funding acquisition. Tianyang Zhang : Conceptualization, Visualization, Formal analysis, Writing - original draft, Writing - review & editing, Validation, Funding acquisition. References An, J., Phillips, M. R., & Conner, K. R. (2010). Validity of proxy-based reports of impulsivity and aggression in Chinese research on suicidal behavior. Crisis, 31 (3), 137-142. https://doi.org/10.1027/0227-5910/a000019 Asano, R., Yoshizawa, H., Yoshida, T., Harada, C., Tamai, R., & Yoshida, T. (2016). Effects of parental parenting attitudes on adolescents socialization via adolescents perceived parenting. Shinrigaku Kenkyu : The Japanese Journal of Psychology, 87 (3), 284-293. https://doi.org/10.4992/jjpsy.87.15013 Becht, A. I., Prinzie, P., Dekovi, M., Akker, A., & Shiner, R. L. (2016). Child personality facets and overreactive parenting as predictors of aggression and rule-breaking trajectories from childhood to adolescence. Development and Psychopathology, 28 (2), 399-413. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0954579415000577 Berger, C., Batanova, M., & Cance, J. D. (2015). Aggressive and prosocial? Examining latent profiles of behavior, social status, machiavellianism, and empathy. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 44 (12), 2230-2244. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-015-0298-9 Berger, C., & Rodkin, P. C. (2012). Group influences on individual aggression and prosociality: Early adolescents who change peer affiliations. Social Development, 21 (2), 396-413. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9507.2011.00628.x Cao, J., Li, X. Y., Ye, Z., Xie, M. J., & Lin, D. H. (2020). Parental psychological and behavioral control and positive youth development among young Chinese adolescents: The mediating role of basic psychological needs satisfaction. Current Psychology . https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-020-00980-1 Cui, L., Morris, A. S., Criss, M. M., Houltberg, B. J., & Silk, J. S. (2014). Parental Psychological Control and Adolescent Adjustment: The Role of Adolescent Emotion Regulation. Parenting, 14 (1), 47-67. https://doi.org/10.1080/15295192.2014.880018 Davis, Mark, & H. (1983). Measuring individual differences in empathy: Evidence for a multidimensional approach. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 44 (1), 113-126. https://doi.org/10.1037//0022-3514.44.1.113 Engen, H. G., & Singer, T. (2013). Empathy circuits. Current Opinion in Neurobiology, 23 (2), 275-282. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conb.2012.11.003 Fei, W. J., Geng, Y. R., Wang, S. S., Ma, Q. H., Peng, X. Q., Zhang, M., & Zhang, T.Y. (2021). Association between parental control and subclinical depressive symptoms in a sample of college freshmen: Roles of empathy and gender. Journal of Affective Disorders, 286 , 301-308. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2021.03.005 Gandhi, A. U., Dawood, S., & Schroder, H. S. (2021). Empathy mind-set moderates the association between low empathy and social aggression. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 36 (3-4), 1679-1697. https://doi.org/10.1177/0886260517747604 Garcia, O. F., & Serra, E. (2019). Raising children with poor school performance: Parenting styles and short- and long-term consequences for adolescent and adult development. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 16 (7), 1089-1113. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16071089 Gilligan, J., & Lee, B. (2005). The resolve to stop the violence project: reducing violence in the community through a jail-based initiative. Journal of Public Health, 27 (2), 143-148. https://doi.org/10.1093/pubmed/fdi011 Holmes, M. B., Driscoll, L., Murphy, E., & Starr, J. A. (2019). A cross-sectional study of empathy among students at two doctor of physical therapy programs in boston. Journal of Allied Health, 48 (3), 181-187. Jiang, Q., Yang, Y. T., Liu, C. L., & Yuan, J. W. (2019). The differing roles of cognitive empathy and affective empathy in the relationship between trait anger and aggressive behavior: A Chinese college students survey. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 5 , 1-21. https://doi.org/10.1177/0886260519879229 Lovett, B. J., & Sheffield, R. A. (2007). Affective empathy deficits in aggressive children and adolescents: a critical review. Clinical Psychology Review, 27 (1), 1-13. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2006.03.003 McElroy, E. M., & Rodriguez, C. M. (2008). Mothers of children with externalizing behavior problems: cognitive risk factors for abuse potential and discipline style and practices. Child Abuse & Neglect, 32 (8), 774-784. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2008.01.002 Parker, G., Tupling, H., & Brown, L. B. (1979). A Parental Bonding Instrument. Psychology & Psychotherapy Theory Research & Practice, 52 (1), 1–10. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.2044-8341.1979.tb02487.x Schreiter, S., Pijnenborg, G. H. M., & aan het Rot, M. (2013). Empathy in adults with clinical or subclinical depressive symptoms. Journal of Affective Disorders, 150 (1), 1-16. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2013.03.009 Shek, D. T. L., Lee, T. Y., Lee, B. M., & Chow, J. (2006). Perceived parental control and psychological well-being in Chinese adolescents in Hong Kong. International Journal of Adolescent Medicine and Health, 18 (3), 535-545. https://doi.org/10.1515/ijamh.2006.18.3.535 Smallbone, S. W., Wheaton, J., & Hourigan, D. (2003). Trait empathy and criminal versatility in sexual offenders. Sexual Abuse : A Journal of Research and Treatment, 15 (1), 49-60. https://doi.org/10.1177/107906320301500104 Tian, Y. L., Yu, C. F., Lin, S., Lu, J. M., Liu, Y., & Zhang, W. (2019). Parental psychological control and adolescent aggressive behavior: deviant peer affiliation as a mediator and school connectedness as a moderator. Frontiers in Psychology, 10 , 358-365. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00358 Tisak, J., Tisak, M. S., Baker, E. R., Amrhein, K. E., & Jensen, C. (2021). The Association Among Parental Bonding, Depression, Social Aggression, and Criminal Assault: Are There Gender Differences Between Male and Female Youth Offenders? Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 36 (3-4), 1883-1908. https://doi.org/10.1177/0886260517744192 Toussaint, L., & Webb, J. R. (2005). Gender differences in the relationship between empathy and forgiveness. The Journal of social psychology, 145 (6), 673-685. https://doi.org/10.3200/SOCP.145.6.673-686 van Zonneveld, L., Platje, E., de Sonneville, L., van Goozen, S., & Swaab, H. (2017). Affective empathy, cognitive empathy and social attention in children at high risk of criminal behaviour. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 58 (8), 913-921. https://doi.org/10.1111/jcpp.12724 Wang, S. S., Hu, H. G., Wang, X. Y., Dong, B., & Zhang, T. Y. (2021). The hidden danger in family environment: The role of self-reported parenting style in cognitive and affective empathy among offenders. Frontiers in Psychology, 12 . https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.588993 Williams, W. H., Chitsabesan, P., Fazel, S., Mcmillan, T., Hughes, N., Parsonage, M., et al. (2018). Traumatic brain injury: a potential cause of violent crime? The Lancet Psychiatry, 5 (10), 836-844. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2215-0366(18)30062-2 Winter, K., Spengler, S., Bermpohl, F., Singer, T., & Kanske, P. (2017). Social cognition in aggressive offenders: Impaired empathy, but intact theory of mind. Scientific Reports, 7 (1), 670-680. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-017-00745-0 Yang, J., & Zhao, X. H. (2020). Parenting styles and children's academic performance: Evidence from middle schools in China. Children and Youth Services Review, 113 . https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2020.105017 Yeo, L. S., Ang, R. P., Loh, S., Fu, K. J., & Karre, J. K. (2011). The role of affective and cognitive empathy in physical, verbal, and indirect aggression of a Singaporean sample of boys. The Journal of Psychology, 145 (4), 313-330. https://doi.org/10.1080/00223980.2011.568986 Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. 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1","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":486601,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eMediating effects of empathy on maternal control-aggressive behavior (n=994)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eNote. PT = perspective-taking, PD = personal distress. ***p \u0026lt; .001.\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"Figure1.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7984321/v1/717987932fc2150e9196d9da.png"},{"id":97142347,"identity":"cfb7a603-bf58-4675-9416-4494ddad8b33","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-12-01 10:07:33","extension":"png","order_by":2,"title":"Figure 2","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"figure","size":271291,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"\u003cp\u003eMediating effects of empathy on paternal control-aggressive behavior (n=994)\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eNote. PD = personal distress. ***p \u0026lt; .001\u003c/p\u003e","description":"","filename":"Figure2.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7984321/v1/53dd9489ca11b8c8f0979258.png"},{"id":106093085,"identity":"db82f614-73e5-45b9-a1e9-6ad3fcc1f682","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2026-04-03 11:33:50","extension":"pdf","order_by":0,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":2033552,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"manuscript.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-7984321/v1/14892d73-7d47-4c17-8835-7809a53cca95.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"No competing interests reported.","formattedTitle":"The different roles of affective and cognitive empathy in the relationship between parental control and aggressive behavior","fulltext":[{"header":"Introduction","content":"\u003cp\u003eAggressive behavior generally defined as \u0026ldquo;any behavior directed at another person with the proximate purpose of causing injury.\u0026rdquo; (Winter et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR28\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e). Aggressive behavior toward someone else is a severe social problem and is especially common among offenders (Williams et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR27\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2018\u003c/span\u003e). Many researches have concluded that aggressive behavior has a number of significant social and economic consequences for society (Berger \u0026amp; Rodkin, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR5\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2012\u003c/span\u003e). The deficits in social comprehension have also been frequently suggested as a central mechanism for aggressive behavior (Lovett \u0026amp; Sheffield, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR16\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2007\u003c/span\u003e; Winter et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR28\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e). More and more studies have shown that aggressive behavior is closely related to social relationships and plays a functional role in peer ecology (Berger et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR4\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2015\u003c/span\u003e). The causes of aggressive behavior are assumed to be diverse, but ample research evidence consistently shows that psychological control, such as parental control, plays an important predictive role for aggressive behavior of adolescent (Cui et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR7\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2014\u003c/span\u003e; Tian et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR22\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2019\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eMany parents struggle to provide a balance between support and control for their children (Garcia \u0026amp; Serra, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR12\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2019\u003c/span\u003e). Nevertheless, many investigators have identified that certain formats of control have significantly association with differential development results (Cui et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR7\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2014\u003c/span\u003e). Higher parental control has been proven to be more common among the population of offenders (Wang et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR26\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e). Previous researches have shown that parental control is correlated with serious psychological problems such as anxieties, autism and depressive symptoms and has also been shown to be associated with antisocial behavior or aggressive behaviors (Cui et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR7\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2014\u003c/span\u003e; Tian et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR22\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2019\u003c/span\u003e). Impairments in societal functioning have also been related to some psychiatric disorders and situations that are characterized by aggressive behavior (Winter et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR28\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e). Earlier studies also suggested that parental control has a more significant association with empathy than parental care and encouragement among offenders (Garcia \u0026amp; Serra, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR12\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2019\u003c/span\u003e; Wang et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR26\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eThe Mediating Role of Empathy in the Parental Control-Empathy-Aggressive Behavior Link\u003c/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEmpathy is a key factor in the evolution of social function and has been defined \u0026ldquo;an ability to experience the world from the perspective of others, to perceive the feelings of others\u0026rdquo; (Engen \u0026amp; Singer, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR9\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2013\u003c/span\u003e). Gandhi et al. (\u003cspan citationid=\"CR11\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e) claimed that empathy is an important mediating factor, and empathy has been demonstrated to play an important mediating role in many structural equation modeling (SEM) models (Gandhi et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR11\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e). Poor empathy is a potential cause of impaired social functioning, and many studies reported that empathy has relationship with aggressive behavior, particularly among the population of male offenders (van Zonneveld et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR25\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2017\u003c/span\u003e). Affective empathy is broadly described as the ability of a person to experience the feelings of another individual and is considered as the earliest phylogenetic system of empathy. Personal distress (PD) and empathic concern (EC) are both emotional systems that support affective empathy and have negative and positive consequences, separately (Schreiter et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR19\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2013\u003c/span\u003e). While Cognitive empathy is widely defined as the ability of understanding another individuals' mental state. Perspective-taking (PT) has been widely characterized as a classic form of cognitive empathy and a measure of an individual's ability to cognitive transposition, thus adopt their psychological perspectives. (Schreiter et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR19\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2013\u003c/span\u003e; Smallbone et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR21\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2003\u003c/span\u003e). Affective processes and cognitive processes support the formation of empathic responses and may play different effects in association with different aggressive behaviors (Jiang et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR15\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2019\u003c/span\u003e). Previous studies have concluded that affective empathy and cognitive empathy are correlated with aggressive behavior, and they have been proven to have help predict aggressive behavior (Jiang et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR15\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2019\u003c/span\u003e; Yeo et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR30\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2011\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe conclusion of previous studies confirmed that parental control has a greater relationship with the empathy of offenders than other parental factors (Garcia \u0026amp; Serra, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR12\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2019\u003c/span\u003e; Wang et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR26\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e). One research found that parental control is related to an increasing trend in PD as a negative component of affective empathy but has no significant association with EC (Fei et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR10\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e). Affective empathy has been thought to have a positive association with aggressive behaviors in previous studies, especially among offenders (Lovett \u0026amp; Sheffield, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR16\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2007\u003c/span\u003e). However, the impact of affective empathy on the association of parental control with aggressive behavior has not yet received much attention. When we switch our perspective to cognitive empathy which have been confirmed that parental control is related to cognitive empathy, parental control have a negative relation with the cognitive empathy of offenders, and maternal control is the more significant influence (Asano et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR2\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2016\u003c/span\u003e; McElroy \u0026amp; Rodriguez, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR17\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2008\u003c/span\u003e; Wang et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR26\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOther researches have concluded that there is no association between paternal control and cognitive empathy (McElroy \u0026amp; Rodriguez, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR17\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2008\u003c/span\u003e). Debate continues about the the relationship of parental control and cognitive empathy, previous studies have also concluded that parental control may be has a positively relationship with cognitive empathy, depending largely on the degree of control (Asano et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR2\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2016\u003c/span\u003e). Cognitive empathy has been confirmed to have relation with aggressive behavior by many previous studies (Jiang et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR15\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2019\u003c/span\u003e; Yeo et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR30\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2011\u003c/span\u003e). Most studies found that cognitive empathy is negatively associated with aggressive behavior, especially among offenders. However, much of the research up to now of these relationships have not dealt with the mediating role. In consideration of the combined model of affective and cognition processes in the processes of social information, this study paid more attention to the various roles that the components of empathy play with in the parental control-empathy-aggressive behavior relationship and identifies the steps for this to occur in a sample of Chinese male offenders.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cdiv id=\"Sec3\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e\u003ch2\u003eThis Study\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eFew studies have focused on the effects of empathy in the relation between parental control and aggressive behavior. Although many researches have assumed that empathy is significantly related to the process of aggressive behavior, some researchers believe that different components of empathy would play different roles in the relation between parental control and aggressive behavior (Jiang et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR15\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2019\u003c/span\u003e; Yeo et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR30\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2011\u003c/span\u003e). Until now, it is complicated to identify the particular role of the components of empathy in the association between parental control and aggression and the steps involved. In the initial study of the mediating effects of affective and cognitive empathy, we developed a mediation model within which affective and cognitive empathy mediates both the mediated and direct pathways.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn this study, parental control was hypothesized to has positively association with aggressive behavior and to have different associations with affective empathy and cognitive empathy. And then, we hypothesized that perceived parental control may have significantly relationship with offenders\u0026rsquo; empathy, which in turn significantly influences offenders\u0026rsquo; aggressive behavior. Moreover, affective empathy and cognitive empathy were expected to mediate the relationships between perceived parental control and offenders\u0026rsquo; aggressive behavior. Furthermore, the pattern of the mediating roles of empathy in the relationship between paternal/maternal control and aggressive behavior were hypothesized to differ.\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},{"header":"Methods","content":"\u003cdiv id=\"Sec5\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e\u003ch2\u003eParticipants\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe participants consisted of 994 male offenders who were drawn from a prison in Jiangsu Province. The age range is 17 to 67 years old (M\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;39.93, SD\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;8.76). Of the samples, 26.1% were only children. 37.9% of offenders were unmarried, 27.8% divorced, 1.2% widowed and 32.9% married. Of the participants, 13.6% graduated from primary school, 62.5% graduated from middle school, 17.2% graduated from high school, and 6.5% graduated from college.\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eProcedure\u003c/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe subjects were recruited after consultation and planning by Soochow University, Suzhou Prison and Center for Disease Control and Prevention. The major recruiting method was to get prison officials to spread the word about this study and find volunteers. Every participant interviewed was conducted by a prison officer, who was not involved in persuading the prisoner to attend the interview. The participants were then interviewed privately by researchers trained by a psychology-related expert from Soochow University. Individual scores were not available for prison officers.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn total, 1,324 offenders (66% of those in the prison), volunteered for the screening. All were certified and the complete scales were returned; However, three offenders were unable to fully complete the questionnaire and were excluded from the analysis. Finally, 994 offenders were selected because their caregivers were their parents. Ratings used for the research included only the information collected from self-reports, including the parenting style, aggressive behavior and empathy scales. Some scales have been designed to obtain relevant data, which can be provided by the authors upon request.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eMeasures\u003c/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eParental control.\u003c/b\u003e The self-reported Parental Bonding Instrument (PBI) was used to assess the parental control. The PBI is a scale which was used to measure individuals' perspectives of their experienced parenting styles during childhood and adolescence (up to age 16) (Parker et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR18\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1979\u003c/span\u003e). Previous theoretical studies have shown that parental control, which generally refers to excessive intervention and lower levels of care for children, has a significant effect on the physical and mental development of individuals, especially mental health disorders. This scale contains two subscales, the maternal subscale (PBI-M) and the paternal subscale (PBI-F), both of which contain 23 items, and was used to measure the three factors of parenting style: caring, encouragement and control. The 4-point Likert scale was used: \"0\" meant \"very inconsistent\", \"1\" meant \"relatively inconsistent\", \"2\" meant \"fairly consistent\", and \"3\" meant \"very consistent\". In this study, Cronbach's alpha coefficients of PBI-F was o.821 and Cronbach's alpha coefficients of PBI-M was 0.776.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAggressive behavior.\u003c/b\u003e The Buss \u0026amp; Perry Aggression Questionnaire (AQ-CV) was used to assess the aggressive behavior and this study used the Chinese version. Buss and Perry\u0026rsquo;s (1992) AQ is one of the highest reliability self-report measures for the measurement of aggression. Many Chinese scholars have translated and modified this scale, verified its reliability and validity in many populations, and formed a questionnaire version that is more suitable for Chinese people - the AQ-CV (An et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR1\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2010\u003c/span\u003e). There are 30 items in the revised AQ-CV and five subscales: verbal aggression, physical aggression, anger, hostility and self-directed aggression. Every item was scored on a 5-point Likert scoring scale: \"1\" meant \"does not conform at all\", \"2\" meant \"does not conform well\", \"3\" meant \"generally conforms\", \"4\" meant \"match\", and \"5\" meant \"perfectly fits\". In addition, higher scores indicate higher levels of aggression. The AQ-CV\u0026rsquo;s Cronbach\u0026rsquo;s alpha coefficient in this research was 0.952.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eEmpathy.\u003c/b\u003e The Interpersonal Response Index questionnaire (IRI) was used to assess empathy. The IRI is a 22-item self-report questionnaire designed to measure the specific results of distinguishing between the two components of empathy (Davis, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR8\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e1983\u003c/span\u003e). So far, this is the only proven and published multi-dimensional empathy assessment. Empathy in a broad sense involves one person's response to observing another's experience. IRI describes four independent dimensions of empathy that assess outcomes related to an individual's self-esteem, social functioning, emotional functioning, and sensitivity to others. The positive and negative components of affective empathy were measured by subscale EC and PD respectively, while cognitive empathy was measured by subscale PT. More particularly, the EC subscale is designed to assess an individual's ability to generate compassion, warmth and attention from the experiences of other individuals, while the PD subscale is designed to measure an individual's subjective feelings about the negative aspects of observing the pain and suffering endured by others. The PT subscale assesses an individual's ability to make cognitive transitions. The Cronbach\u0026rsquo;s alpha coefficient of the IRI in this study was 0.862.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cdiv id=\"Sec8\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e\u003ch2\u003eData Analysis\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eFirst of all, SAS 9.4 was used for data analysis in this study. Descriptive analysis was performed for each variable and linear correlation analysis was used to explain the correlation between variables. Then, we used the PROCESS macro in SPSS version 21.0 to examine the associations between perceived parental control and aggressive behavior, and the moderating role of affective and cognitive empathy in this study. A total of 5000 bootstrap samples were extracted to obtain the robust standard error and bootstrap confidence interval of parameter estimation. The result is statistically significant when the confidence interval does not include 0. A p-value\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;.05 was considered statistically significant.\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},{"header":"Results","content":"\u003cdiv id=\"Sec10\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e\u003ch2\u003eSociodemographic, Parental Control, Aggressive Behavior and Empathy Characteristics\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe binary analyses of parental control, aggressive behavior, the empathy scale scores and sociodemographic characteristics were shown in Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e. These results indicated that the higher the education level of the offender, the lower the parental control they experienced (\u003cem\u003eF\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;3.38, \u003cem\u003ep\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;.05). Offenders who had higher education and more children showed higher aggressive behavior than offenders with lower education and fewer children (\u003cem\u003eF\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;3.66, \u003cem\u003ep\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;.05; \u003cem\u003eF\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;4.04, \u003cem\u003ep\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;.01). Offenders with higher education have higher level of perspective taking and empathic concern, as well as lower level of personal distress than offenders with lower education (\u003cem\u003eF\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;6.27, \u003cem\u003ep\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;.01; \u003cem\u003eF\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;8.05, \u003cem\u003ep\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;.001; \u003cem\u003eF\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;2.98, \u003cem\u003ep\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;.05). Moreover, offenders who had a sibling showed higher empathic concern than those who did not (\u003cem\u003et\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;2.01, \u003cem\u003ep\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;.05). The offenders who were single for any reason showed lower empathic concern (\u003cem\u003eF\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;5.51, \u003cem\u003ep\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;.001) (Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e). There were no other differences according to sociodemographic characteristics.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab1\" border=\"1\"\u003e\u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 1\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eCharacteristics of parental control, aggressive behavior and empathy among offenders by demographic factors. (\u003cem\u003en\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;994)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/caption\u003e\u003ccolgroup cols=\"8\"\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c6\" colnum=\"6\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c7\" colnum=\"7\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c8\" colnum=\"8\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cthead\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003en\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eMaternal control\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003ePaternal\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003econtrol\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eAggressive behavior\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003ePerspective taking\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eEmpathic concern\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u003cp\u003ePersonal\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003edistress\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/thead\u003e\u003ctbody\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAge\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1.73\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e2.27\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1.98\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.62\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.05\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.46\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u0026lt;30\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e107\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e6.26\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.42\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e6.57\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.66\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e62.67\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;21.69\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e8.44\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;4.07\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e16.26\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.35\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.23\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.99\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e30\u0026ndash;39\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e392\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.81\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.43\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.89\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.58\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e59.78\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;21.87\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e8.16\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.89\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e16.36\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.49\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e4.95\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;4.02\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e40\u0026ndash;49\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e341\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.71\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.42\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.89\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.47\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e59.74\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;19.72\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e7.89\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.86\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e16.46\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.56\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.27\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;4.03\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u0026ge;\u0026thinsp;50\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e154\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.60\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.51\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.92\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.42\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e56.36\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;21.71\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e8.12\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.65\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e16.41\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.44\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.03\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.52\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eOnly child\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1.49\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.82\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1.19\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1.15\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e2.01*\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.69\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eYes\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e260\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.99\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.46\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e6.08\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.65\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e58.21\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;21.88\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e8.33\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.87\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e16.03\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.55\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e4.96\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.85\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eNo\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e734\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.73\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.43\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.93\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.49\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e60.02\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;20.91\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e8.01\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.86\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e16.53\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.46\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.15\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.98\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eEducation\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1.54\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e3.38*\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e3.66*\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e6.27**\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e8.05***\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e2.98*\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003ePrimary school\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eand below\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e136\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.91\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.74\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e6.07\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.59\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e59.53\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;20.76\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e7.79\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;4.07\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e15.49\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.52\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.72\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.80\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eJunior high school\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e622\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.86\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.34\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e6.11\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.42\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e61.00\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;21.79\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e7.82\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.65\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e16.30\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.39\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.19\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;4.00\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eHigh school\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e171\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.65\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.49\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.65\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.65\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e56.09\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;19.14\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e8.74\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;4.22\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e17.02\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.67\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e4.51\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.72\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eCollege and above\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e65\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.26\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.57\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.25\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.02\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e54.74\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;19.24\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e9.59\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.93\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e17.66\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.19\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e4.51\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;4.11\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eMarried state\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1.05\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1.78\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.17\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.16\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.51***\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1.22\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eUnmarried\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e377\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.75\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.38\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e6.06\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.63\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e59.79\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;21.82\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e8.00\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.92\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e16.19\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.40\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e4.84\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.92\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eDivorced\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e276\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.88\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.47\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e6.09\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.48\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e59.15\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;21.09\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e8.10\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.78\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e16.06\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.37\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.28\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;4.00\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eWidowers\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e13\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e6.85\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;1.77\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e6.74\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.32\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e63.00\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;28.98\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e7.85\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.94\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e14.84\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.70\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e6.31\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.59\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eMarried\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e328\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.73\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.50\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.73\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.47\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e59.46\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;20.10\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e8.20\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.82\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e17.00\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.63\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.21\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.94\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eNumber of children\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1.06\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1.58\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e4.04**\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e2.01\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.3\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1.58\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e305\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.7\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.49\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.98\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.75\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e60.65\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;22.25\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e7.96\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.80\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e16.25\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.23\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e4.95\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.98\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e487\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.78\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.30\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.89\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.39\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e57.98\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;20.00\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e8.18\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.97\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e16.46\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.60\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e4.99\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.89\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e2\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e161\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.89\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.50\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e6.29\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.52\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e59.74\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;20.53\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e8.39\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.74\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e16.51\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.64\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.46\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.83\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u0026ge;\u0026thinsp;3\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e41\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e6.39\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.30\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.46\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;2.46\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e60.17\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;25.50\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e6.83\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.25\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e16.44\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;3.36\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e6.09\u0026thinsp;\u0026plusmn;\u0026thinsp;4.62\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/tbody\u003e\u003c/colgroup\u003e\u003ctfoot\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd colspan=\"8\"\u003e\u003cem\u003eNote.\u003c/em\u003e * \u003cem\u003ep\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;.05, ** \u003cem\u003ep\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;.01, ***\u003cem\u003ep\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;.001.\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/tfoot\u003e\u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e-------------------------------------------------------\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003ePlease insert Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e here\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e-------------------------------------------------------\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv id=\"Sec11\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e\u003ch2\u003eCorrelations Among Variables\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe correlations of maternal control, paternal control, aggressive behavior and empathy among offenders were shown in Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003e. These results indicated that the maternal control was positively related to aggressive behavior, perspective taking and personal distress, while was negatively associated with empathic concern. Paternal control has a positively relationship with aggressive behavior and personal distress, while has negatively relationship with empathic concern. In addition, PT was positively associated with aggressive behavior, while EC was negatively related to aggressive behavior.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab2\" border=\"1\"\u003e\u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 2\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eLinear correlations among the study variables. (\u003cem\u003en\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;994)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/caption\u003e\u003ccolgroup cols=\"7\"\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c6\" colnum=\"6\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"char\" char=\".\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c7\" colnum=\"7\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cthead\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1.\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e2.\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e3.\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e4.\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e6.\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/thead\u003e\u003ctbody\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1. Maternal Control\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e2. Paternal Control\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.54***\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e3. Aggressive behavior\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.18***\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.28***\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e4. PT\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.08*\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.05\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.08*\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5. EC\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e-0.18***\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e-0.21***\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e-0.01\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.37***\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e6. PD\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.29***\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.30***\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.47***\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.32***\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e-0.02\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"char\" char=\".\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/tbody\u003e\u003c/colgroup\u003e\u003ctfoot\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd colspan=\"7\"\u003e\u003cem\u003eNote.\u003c/em\u003e PT\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;perspective-taking, EC\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;empathic concern, PD\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;personal distress. * \u003cem\u003ep\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;.05, *** \u003cem\u003ep\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;.001\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/tfoot\u003e\u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e-------------------------------------------------------\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003ePlease insert Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003e here\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e-------------------------------------------------------\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv id=\"Sec12\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e\u003ch2\u003eThe Mediating Effect of Empathy on the Maternal Control-Aggressive Behavior Link\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe mediation results of empathy were shown in Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab3\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003e and Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e. These results showed that in the absence of empathy, the total effect of maternal control on aggressive behavior was significant (β\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;1.58, t\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;5.85, p\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;.001). Maternal control predicted PT and PD positively. Moreover, the results we could observed as following when empathy as a mediator in the analysis. The associations of maternal control with PT (\u003cem\u003eβ\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.12, t\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;2.46, p\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;.05), EC (β = -0.26, t = -5.92, p\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;.001\u003c/em\u003e) and PD (\u003cem\u003eβ\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.46, t\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;9.53, p \u0026lt;. 001\u003c/em\u003e) were significant, PT (\u003cem\u003eβ = -0.47, t = -2.70, p\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;.01\u003c/em\u003e) and PD (\u003cem\u003eβ\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;2.58, t\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;15.60, p\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;.001\u003c/em\u003e) could still predict aggressive behavior. Bootstrapping showed that empathy could explain the relationship between maternal control and aggressive behavior through PT (\u003cem\u003eindirect effect = -0.07, 95% CI = -0.02\u0026ndash;0.002\u003c/em\u003e) and PD (\u003cem\u003eindirect effect\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.14, 95% CI\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.11\u0026ndash;0.18\u003c/em\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"gridtable\"\u003e\u003ctable float=\"Yes\" id=\"Tab3\" border=\"1\"\u003e\u003ccaption language=\"En\"\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionNumber\"\u003eTable 3\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv class=\"CaptionContent\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe mediating effect of empathy with aggressive behavior as the dependent variable. (\u003cem\u003en\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;994)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/caption\u003e\u003ccolgroup cols=\"16\"\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c1\" colnum=\"1\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c2\" colnum=\"2\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c3\" colnum=\"3\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c4\" colnum=\"4\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c5\" colnum=\"5\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c6\" colnum=\"6\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c7\" colnum=\"7\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c8\" colnum=\"8\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c9\" colnum=\"9\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c10\" colnum=\"10\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c11\" colnum=\"11\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c12\" colnum=\"12\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c13\" colnum=\"13\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c14\" colnum=\"14\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c15\" colnum=\"15\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv align=\"left\" class=\"colspec\" colname=\"c16\" colnum=\"16\"\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cthead\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c3\" namest=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eModel 1\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(Aggressive behavior)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eModel 2\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(PT)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"3\" nameend=\"c8\" namest=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eModel 3\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(EC)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"4\" nameend=\"c12\" namest=\"c9\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eModel 4\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(PD)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"3\" nameend=\"c15\" namest=\"c13\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eModel 5\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e(Aggressive behavior)\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/th\u003e\u003cth align=\"left\" colspan=\"1\" nameend=\"c16\" namest=\"c16\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/th\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/thead\u003e\u003ctbody\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c2\" namest=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eVariable\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eβ\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003et\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eβ\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003et\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eβ\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c8\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003et\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c10\" namest=\"c9\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eβ\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c12\" namest=\"c11\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003et\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c14\" namest=\"c13\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eβ\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c16\" namest=\"c15\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003et\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eMaternal Control\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1.58\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.85***\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.12\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e2.46*\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e-0.26\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c8\" namest=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e-5.92***\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c10\" namest=\"c9\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.46\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c12\" namest=\"c11\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e9.53***\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c14\" namest=\"c13\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.49\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c15\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1.90\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"1\" nameend=\"c16\" namest=\"c16\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003ePT\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c8\" namest=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c10\" namest=\"c9\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c12\" namest=\"c11\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c14\" namest=\"c13\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e-0.47\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c15\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e-2.70***\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"1\" nameend=\"c16\" namest=\"c16\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eEC\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c8\" namest=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c10\" namest=\"c9\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c12\" namest=\"c11\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c14\" namest=\"c13\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.21\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c15\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1.14\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"1\" nameend=\"c16\" namest=\"c16\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003ePD\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c8\" namest=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c10\" namest=\"c9\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c12\" namest=\"c11\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c14\" namest=\"c13\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e2.58\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c15\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e15.60***\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"1\" nameend=\"c16\" namest=\"c16\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eR\u003csup\u003e2\u003c/sup\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c3\" namest=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.03\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.01\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"3\" nameend=\"c8\" namest=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.03\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"4\" nameend=\"c12\" namest=\"c9\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.08\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"3\" nameend=\"c15\" namest=\"c13\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.23\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"1\" nameend=\"c16\" namest=\"c16\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eF\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c3\" namest=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e34.27***\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e6.07*\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"3\" nameend=\"c8\" namest=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e35.06***\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"4\" nameend=\"c12\" namest=\"c9\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e90.90***\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"3\" nameend=\"c15\" namest=\"c13\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e73.17***\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"1\" nameend=\"c16\" namest=\"c16\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003ePaternal\u0026nbsp;Control\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e2.30\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e9.04***\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.08\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1.73\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e-0.29\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c8\" namest=\"c7\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e-6.77***\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c10\" namest=\"c9\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.47\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c12\" namest=\"c11\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e9.88***\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c14\" namest=\"c13\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1.31\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c15\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e5.32**\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"1\" nameend=\"c16\" namest=\"c16\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003ePT\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c8\" namest=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c10\" namest=\"c9\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c12\" namest=\"c11\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c14\" namest=\"c13\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e-0.50\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c15\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e2.85\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"1\" nameend=\"c16\" namest=\"c16\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eEC\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c8\" namest=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c10\" namest=\"c9\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c12\" namest=\"c11\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c14\" namest=\"c13\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.35\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c15\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e1.90\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"1\" nameend=\"c16\" namest=\"c16\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003ePD\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c2\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c3\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c4\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c5\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c6\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c8\" namest=\"c7\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c10\" namest=\"c9\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c12\" namest=\"c11\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c14\" namest=\"c13\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e2.42\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c15\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e14.77***\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"1\" nameend=\"c16\" namest=\"c16\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eR\u003csup\u003e2\u003c/sup\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c3\" namest=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.08\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.03\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"3\" nameend=\"c8\" namest=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.04\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"4\" nameend=\"c12\" namest=\"c9\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.09\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"3\" nameend=\"c15\" namest=\"c13\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e0.25\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"1\" nameend=\"c16\" namest=\"c16\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colname=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eF\u003c/em\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c3\" namest=\"c2\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e81.70***\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"2\" nameend=\"c5\" namest=\"c4\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e2.98\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"3\" nameend=\"c8\" namest=\"c6\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e45.77***\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"4\" nameend=\"c12\" namest=\"c9\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e97.71***\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"3\" nameend=\"c15\" namest=\"c13\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e81.15***\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"1\" nameend=\"c16\" namest=\"c16\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003ctr\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"15\" nameend=\"c15\" namest=\"c1\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eNote.\u003c/em\u003e PT\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;perspective taking, PD\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;personal distress, EC\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;empathic concern. * \u003cem\u003ep\u003c/em\u003e\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;.05, **\u0026nbsp;\u003cem\u003ep\u003c/em\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u0026lt; .01, ***\u003cem\u003ep\u003c/em\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u0026lt; .001.\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/td\u003e\u003ctd align=\"left\" colspan=\"1\" nameend=\"c16\" namest=\"c16\"\u003e\u0026nbsp;\u003c/td\u003e\u003c/tr\u003e\u003c/tbody\u003e\u003c/colgroup\u003e\u003c/table\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e-------------------------------------------------------\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003ePlease insert Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab3\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003e here\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cul\u003e\u003cli\u003e\u003cp\u003e-------------------------------------------------------\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/li\u003e\u003cli\u003e\u003cp\u003e-------------------------------------------------------\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/li\u003e\u003c/ul\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003ePlease insert Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig1\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e1\u003c/span\u003e here\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e-------------------------------------------------------\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv id=\"Sec13\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e\u003ch2\u003eThe Mediating Effect of Empathy on the Paternal Control-Aggressive Behavior Link\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe mediation results of empathy are shown in Table\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Tab3\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e3\u003c/span\u003e and Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003e. As expected, in the absence of empathy, the total of paternal control on aggressive behavior was significant (\u003cem\u003eβ\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;2.30, t\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;9.04, p\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;.001\u003c/em\u003e). Paternal control predicted PD positively. Moreover, the results we could observed as following when empathy as a mediator in the analysis. Paternal control had significant effects on EC (\u003cem\u003eβ = -0.29, t = -6.77, p\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;.001\u003c/em\u003e) and PD (\u003cem\u003eβ\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.47, t\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;9.88, p\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;.001\u003c/em\u003e), PD (\u003cem\u003eβ\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;2.42, t\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;14.77, p\u0026thinsp;\u0026lt;\u0026thinsp;.001\u003c/em\u003e) could still predict aggressive behavior. Bootstrapping shows that empathy could explain the correlation between maternal control and aggressive behavior through PD (indirect effect\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.05, 95% CI\u0026thinsp;=\u0026thinsp;0.04\u0026ndash;0.07).\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e-------------------------------------------------------\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003ePlease insert Fig.\u0026nbsp;\u003cspan refid=\"Fig2\" class=\"InternalRef\"\u003e2\u003c/span\u003e here\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e-------------------------------------------------------\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},{"header":"Discussion","content":"\u003cp\u003eIn order to find the various roles played by the components of empathy in the parental control-empathy-aggressive behavior link, accompanying the possible steps, we developed two mediation models with the aim of investigating the moderating role of cognitive and affective empathy. These results provide a renewed idea for understanding the complex correlations between parental control and aggressive behavior.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWe found that the higher education offenders have, the lower the paternal control and aggressive behavior, which was consistent with that conclusion by previous researches, and parents were obviously more tolerant of children with better academic performance and higher education in the Chinese educational environment (Yang \u0026amp; Zhao, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR29\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e). Moreover, higher education predicts a better education in mind and character, which greatly reduces the risk of aggressive behavior. In our study, offenders with higher levels of education showed higher cognitive empathy and affective empathy. Comparison of the findings with those of other studies confirms that individuals with higher levels of education have a higher level of empathy, with a greater awareness of things, ability to feel the emotions of others, and ability to detoxify negative feelings (Holmes et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR14\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2019\u003c/span\u003e). Maternal and paternal control have the same pattern of relationship with affective empathy, and the results are consistent with those of previous studies. Maternal control has a positive relationship with cognitive empathy, but paternal control has no relationship with it (Fei et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR10\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e). Parental control had a negative relationship with the positive component of affective empathy but had a positive relationship with the negative component of affective empathy. Cognitive empathy and the negative component of affective empathy have positive associations with aggressive behavior. The results of structural equation models indicate that empathy fully mediates the association between maternal control and aggressive behavior, with cognitive empathy acting as a negative predictor and the negative component of affective empathy acting as a positive predictor. Many studies have confirmed that parental control has a positive association with aggressive behavior; conversely, care and encouragement are more likely to reduce the risk of aggression (Cui et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR7\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2014\u003c/span\u003e; Tian et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR22\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2019\u003c/span\u003e). A possible reason for our findings is that maternal parenting style had a more significant impact on the offender's family rearing environment than paternal parenting style, which is consistent with previous research findings (Yang \u0026amp; Zhao, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR29\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e). This suggests that we should pay more attention to the maternal component of parenting styles. Empathy plays a partially mediated role between father control and aggressive behavior, with cognitive empathy having no predictive effect and the negative component of affective empathy having a positive predictive effect. The relationships between parental control with aggressive behavior and empathy were consistent with our hypothesis.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cdiv id=\"Sec15\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e\u003ch2\u003eThe Mediating Effect of Empathy on Maternal Control and Aggressive Behavior\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eConsistent with our hypothesis, the results of analysis suggest that empathy fully mediates the association between maternal control and aggressive behavior, while affective and cognitive empathy both mediate the associations between perceived parental control and offenders\u0026rsquo; aggressive behavior. We have suggested that empathy is an important explanatory mechanism for the mediating model. In particular, offenders with high levels of parental control are susceptible to have higher perspective-taking and personal distress scores, which in turn are associated with aggressive behavior. The present study confirmed previous researches that affective and cognitive empathy have opposite influences, and then personal distress is more associated than perspective taking in this study.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn exception to the overall conclusions of the mediation role, every aspect of the model is worth noting. The findings of the first section of the mediation process (i.e., maternal control \u0026rarr; empathy) suggest that maternal control has positive relationship with perspective taking and personal distress. The findings are inconsistent with those of previous studies, which suggest that maternal control was negatively related to perspective taking (McElroy \u0026amp; Rodriguez, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR17\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2008\u003c/span\u003e). Some studies have also concluded that maternal control has a positive relationship with perspective taking (Asano et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR2\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2016\u003c/span\u003e; Wang et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR26\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e). The possible reason for the positive correlation between maternal control and cognitive empathy among offenders is that maternal control is more likely to pressure individuals to learn more and understand the thoughts of others, thus indirectly improving their cognitive empathy in a traditional Chinese family environment (Yang \u0026amp; Zhao, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR29\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e). The relationship between maternal control and personal distress was consistent with conclusions of previous study (Wang et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR26\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e). The higher negative component of affective empathy may lead individuals to suffer more emotional harm and pain.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e According to the second section of the mediation process (i.e., empathy \u0026rarr; aggressive behavior), findings showed that perspective taking was negatively related to aggressive behavior, while personal distress was positively related to aggressive behavior. As previous studies have concluded, cognitive empathy has a negative relation with aggression, especially among offenders (Jiang et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR15\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2019\u003c/span\u003e; Yeo et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR30\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2011\u003c/span\u003e). Previous studies have concluded that affective empathy has a positive or negative relationship with aggressive behavior, while our findings confirmed that the negative component of affective empathy is positively related to aggressive behavior (Lovett \u0026amp; Sheffield, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR16\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2007\u003c/span\u003e). This finding suggests that personal distress (a negative component of affective empathy) plays a more important role in the association between affective empathy with aggressive behavior than empathic concern (a positive component of affective empathy).\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv id=\"Sec16\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e\u003ch2\u003eThe Mediating Effect of Empathy on Paternal Control and Aggressive Behavior\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe findings of the structural equation models indicate that empathy partially mediates the association between paternal control and aggressive behavior, the results were consistent with our hypothesis. However, only affective empathy plays a mediating role between paternal control and offenders\u0026rsquo; aggressive behavior. Offenders with high degrees of parental control are susceptible to report higher personal distress scores, which in turn are correlated with aggressive behavior.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe first section of the mediation process (i.e., paternal control \u0026rarr; empathy) recommended that paternal control is positively correlated with personal distress. Previous research also found that paternal control is associated with personal distress, although the association between maternal control and aggressive behavior is more significant (Tisak et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR23\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e). The second section of the mediation process (i.e., empathy \u0026rarr; aggressive behavior) showed that personal distress is positively associated with aggressive behavior. The findings were inconsistent with those of previous studies; the negative component of affective empathy was positively associated with aggressive behavior, while empathic concern (a positive component of affective empathy) was negatively related to aggressive behavior (Lovett \u0026amp; Sheffield, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR16\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2007\u003c/span\u003e). Offenders are individuals with antisocial behavior and violent tendencies, and studies have shown that empathic concern is low in this group (Smallbone et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR21\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2003\u003c/span\u003e). Thus, there is a more significant association between personal distress, a negative component of affective empathy, and aggressive behavior.\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eDifference between the Mediating Roles of Empathy in the Association of Maternal Control and Paternal Control with Aggressive Behavior\u003c/b\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIt is worth noting that the current study revealed that affective and cognitive empathy fully mediate the association between maternal control and aggressive behavior, and the direct effect was great. Only affective empathy partially moderated the association between paternal control and aggressive behavior, and the indirect effect was great too. The difference between the mediating roles of empathy in the relationships of maternal control and paternal control with aggressive behavior was consistent with our hypothesis. The main reason for our results may be that the maternal component of parenting style had a more significant effect on aggressive behavior than the paternal component. Many previous studies have concluded that the maternal parenting style has a greater association with the development of individuals (Tisak et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR23\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2021\u003c/span\u003e; Yang \u0026amp; Zhao, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR29\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e). Notably, although only maternal control had a positive relation with cognitive empathy, it was positively associated with reduced aggressive behavior. Conclusions of this study also confirm that a certain degree of control has a positive relationship with individuals\u0026rsquo; development (Shek et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR20\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2006\u003c/span\u003e). Meanwhile, the mediation of the negative component of affective empathy showed that parental control has a negative relationship with aggressive behavior. The most likely reason for the differential correlation between parental control and aggressive behavior is the degree of control. This was consistent with the conclusions of previous researches; moderate and mild control can promote good development, while too much control may place individuals on the wrong developmental trajectory and, in more serious cases, may trigger antisocial and aggressive behaviors (Cao et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR6\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2020\u003c/span\u003e; Shek et al., \u003cspan citationid=\"CR20\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2006\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e\u003cdiv id=\"Sec17\" class=\"Section2\"\u003e\u003ch2\u003eLimitations and Further Research\u003c/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eAlthough this study has some different thoughts compared to the previous studies, there are still some limitations. First, we realize that the results of the questionnaire could not allow for causal conclusions for the time being; and then, future researches should consider to use an established laboratory program to examine the effects of empathy. Second, the study sample for this study was only male prisoners, and if gender moderates the relationship of concern is not clear. Previous studies have concluded that women have higher empathic ability than men, and subsequent researches hope to recruit individuals of different genders to participate (Toussaint \u0026amp; Webb, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR24\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2005\u003c/span\u003e). Finally, future studies should consider other groups, such as students at various stages or normal populations. The particular group of offender participant in this study were more likely to have experienced poor parental rearing styles in childhood and to have aggressive behaviors (Gilligan \u0026amp; Lee, \u003cspan citationid=\"CR13\" class=\"CitationRef\"\u003e2005\u003c/span\u003e).\u003c/p\u003e\u003c/div\u003e"},{"header":"Conclusion","content":"\u003cp\u003eIn conclusion, the main goal of the current study was to determine the relationship between perceived parental control and aggressive behavior via the mediating role of affective and cognitive empathy among offenders, especially about maternal control. Overall, these findings have a number of important implications for future practice and help to contribute to an understanding of how parental bonding relates to offenders\u0026rsquo; aggressive behavior, which can serve as a theoretical basis for constructing a sound social environment and promoting the development of reducing aggressive behavior, which in turn, reduce violent conflict and crime rates.\u003c/p\u003e"},{"header":"Declarations","content":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eEthical approval\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOur research was approved by the Ethics Committee of Soochow University for research conducted with human subjects. The ethics declaration in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki. The participants were informed of the purposes and procedures before the study commenced. The survey data were collected only after informed consent was obtained from the participants.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAvailability of supporting data\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe datasets generated during and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.\u003c/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eDeclaration of Competing Interest\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWe declare that they have no conflict of interest.\u003c/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e Funding\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis work was supported by the MOE (Ministry of Education in China) Project of Humanities and Social Sciences [grant number 22YJCZH243] and the Chinese Government Scholarship of China Scholarship Council [grant number 202106920027] and the Suzhou Science and Technology Healthcare Strengthening Project [grant number QNXM2024087].\u003c/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eConsent for publication\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eConsent for publication was obtained from the participants.\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCRediT authorship contribution statement\u003c/strong\u003e\u003c/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eShaishai Wang\u003c/strong\u003e: Visualization, Formal analysis, Writing - original draft, Writing - review \u0026amp; editing.\u003cstrong\u003e Bo Dong\u003c/strong\u003e: Visualization, Formal analysis, Writing - original draft, Writing - review \u0026amp; editing. \u003cstrong\u003eXinyang Wang\u003c/strong\u003e: Writing - review \u0026amp; editing. \u003cstrong\u003eYiran Geng\u003c/strong\u003e: Writing - review \u0026amp; editing. \u003cstrong\u003eWenjing Fei\u003c/strong\u003e: Writing - review \u0026amp; editing. \u003cstrong\u003eJiachun Yu\u003c/strong\u003e: Writing - review \u0026amp; editing. \u003cstrong\u003eMing Zhang\u003c/strong\u003e: Conceptualization, Visualization, Writing - review \u0026amp; editing, Validation, Funding acquisition. \u003cstrong\u003eTianyang Zhang\u003c/strong\u003e: Conceptualization, Visualization, Formal analysis, Writing - original draft, Writing - review \u0026amp; editing, Validation, Funding acquisition.\u003c/p\u003e\n"},{"header":"References","content":"\u003col\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eAn, J., Phillips, M. 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The role of affective and cognitive empathy in physical, verbal, and indirect aggression of a Singaporean sample of boys. \u003cem\u003eThe Journal of Psychology, 145\u003c/em\u003e(4), 313-330. https://doi.org/10.1080/00223980.2011.568986\u003c/li\u003e\n\u003c/ol\u003e"}],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":true,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":false,"hideJournal":true,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":false,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":false,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true},"keywords":"Aggressive behavior, parental control, affective empathy, cognitive empathy, offenders","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7984321/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-7984321/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eAggressive behavior and empathy have long been recognized to be related to violent crime and often to be closely related to parental control. However, little research focusing on the effects of empathy in the relation between parental control and aggressive behavior. This study concentrated on the effects that various components of empathy play in the parental control-empathy-aggressive behavior link and attempts to determine whether there are differences in the mediating roles empathy plays in the relationships between aggressive behavior and maternal and paternal control. Participants included 994 offenders who completed the parenting style scale, aggressive behavior scale and the interpersonal reactivity index. The moderated mediating model analysis results demonstrate that empathy fully mediates the association between maternal control and aggressive behavior, with cognitive empathy acting as a negative predictor and the negative component of affective empathy acting as a positive predictor. Empathy plays a partially mediated role between paternal control and aggressive behavior, with the negative component of affective empathy having a positive predictive effect. Collectively, these results highlight the importance of empathy as a mediating factor, and more attention should be paid to the other possible moderating effects of empathy on parenting styles.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"The different roles of affective and cognitive empathy in the relationship between parental control and aggressive behavior","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2025-12-01 08:34:03","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-7984321/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"d9e7eb52-f370-4522-b0fa-0884e6ab4821","owner":[],"postedDate":"December 1st, 2025","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"posted","subjectAreas":[],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2026-03-30T07:43:51+00:00","versionOfRecord":[],"versionCreatedAt":"2025-12-01 08:34:03","video":"","vorDoi":"","vorDoiUrl":"","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-7984321","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-7984321","identity":"rs-7984321","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"XKTyCvWXoU3ODBz1xrDgd","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}