TITLE:
The Relationship between Psychological Control-Behavioral Control and Anxiety: A Psychological Network Analysis Study
AUTHORS:
Zihuan Xiong, Biguli Shaheduola, Yue Yu
KEYWORDS:
Parental Control, Adolescent Anxiety, Psychological Network Analysis, Bridge Symptoms, Precision Intervention
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Access Library Journal,
Vol.13 No.5,
May
29,
2026
ABSTRACT: Adolescent anxiety disorders represent a significant public health challenge in China, wherein familial influences, particularly parental control, are pivotal. Prevailing research, however, often conceptualizes parental control monolithically, overlooking its multidimensionality and symptom-specific pathways. Bridging this gap, this study applied psychological network analysis (PNA) to delineate the nuanced associations between distinct parental control dimensions—parental psychological control (PPC) and parental behavioral control (PBC)—and specific generalized anxiety symptoms among Chinese vocational secondary school students (N = 3011). A cross-domain Gaussian Graphical Model, regularized with EBICglasso, revealed guilt induction (GI) as the central node within the control network and uncontrollable worry (GAD2) as the core anxiety symptom. A strong GI-GAD2 bridge edge highlighted a key mechanistic pathway. The network demonstrated high within-domain connectivity and distinct cross-domain associations: PPC dimensions showed positive links to anxiety, whereas PBC dimensions exhibited weaker or potentially buffering effects. The network proved highly stable (CS-correlation ≥ 0.70). These findings elucidate the intricate topology of parental control-anxiety interplays, pinpointing precise intervention targets—such as reducing guilt induction to mitigate uncontrollable worry. By shifting from aggregate-level correlations to a dynamic, symptom-oriented framework, this study provides a foundation for precision prevention and family-system interventions in adolescent mental health.