Closeness and Conflict in Parent-Adolescent Relationship: Heterogeneity and Linkage

• In Event: The Role of Parents in Child and Adolescent Development

Abstract

We examined the major patterns of adolescents’ closeness to and conflicts with their parents at 12th grade. Based on a sample of Taiwanese high school students, results from factor mixture modeling revealed that adolescents formed two types of relationship with their parents: high closeness and high conflicts, or low closeness and high conflicts. Adolescents would have a high level of depressive symptoms and a low level of self-esteem when they reported that a similar level of closeness and conflicts to both parents. The findings highlight that closeness to and conflicts with parents are two distinctive dimensions of parent-adolescent relationship.

Authors

• Yu-Chung Lawrence Wang, National Changhua University of Education

• Hsun-Yu Chan, National Taiwan Normal University

• Ya-Yu Cheng, University of California - Los Angeles