THE ROLE OF PARENTAL BEHAVIOUR AND SELF-ESTEEM OF FATHER AND MOTHER ON SELF-ESTEEM AND SELFCONTROL OF BOYS AND GIRLS The aim of the research was to analyse the connection between parental behaviours and self-esteem of the parents on the self-esteem and self-control of the children. The pupils of the seventh and eighth grade of six primary schools in the area of the city of Zagreb and the city of Split and their parents participated in the research. The children filled out the Coopersmith Self-Esteem Inventory, the Brief Self-Control Scale and the Perception of Parental Behaviour Scale, while the parents filled out the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale. Regression analysis was used and it has determined that the parental control is the best predictor for the child’s self-esteem. Self-esteem of boys is better predicted by the sets of parental predictors and it is somewhat more connected with the father’s self-control, while self-esteem of girls is more connected with the mother’s self-control. Self-control of girls is best predicted by the mother’s acceptance and control, so that the sets of parental variables, more specifically the mother’s variables, are significant only for predicting self-control of girls. The assumption about the greater role of the mother in the development of self-esteem and self-control of children was confirmed, while the assumptions about the gender differentiation in upbringing were confirmed only in the case of the child’s self-control, but not in the case of their self-esteem, which shows that there are differences in the direction of transition towards more modern upbringing practices. The results, as well as the existing studies and theoretical assumptions, point out the importance of the parental role as the model for the development of the child’s self-esteem and self-control, and the different approaches in the upbringing of boys and girls can be addressed specifically.