Shaping futures from a distance: Joint trajectories of remote parenting and their links to academic outcomes in China's left‐behind youth

Abstract

This longitudinal study explored the distinct trajectories of remote parenting practices as perceived by China's left‐behind middle school students and the associations of these trajectories on academic achievement and resilience. Data were collected from 2981 first‐year middle school students whose parents are migrant workers. Using parallel‐process growth mixture modelling, we identified five distinct trajectories of remote authoritarian parenting and remote parental involvement in learning. The High Stable Remote Involvement with Decline in Remote Authoritarian Parenting trajectory (54.38%) achieved the highest academic performance and academic resilience. Conversely, the Decreasing Remote Involvement with Rising Remote Authoritarian Parenting trajectory (9.39%) showed the lowest outcomes. These findings underscore the critical importance of maintaining consistent and supportive remote parental involvement while reducing controlling behaviours to enhance the academic and psychological well‐being of left‐behind adolescents.