Understanding Misalignment Between Parents’ and Children’s Reports of Life Satisfaction

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Saturday 7:45 am - Gold 3
  In Roundtable Session: Examining Social Emotional Development in Early Childhood and through Parenting

Abstract

This study examines whether parents accurately perceive their children’s life satisfaction (LS) and what factors contribute to perception gaps. Using data from 796 parent–child dyads, we analyzed associations between parental LS, their ratings of their children’s LS, and children’s self-reported LS. Results revealed that parental LS positively predicted both their ratings of children’s LS and children’s self-reported LS. However, over 80% of parents misjudged their children’s LS, with overestimation being most common. Multinomial logistic regression showed that marital status, income, and level of education predicted these discrepancies, while parental self-efficacy did not. Findings highlight persistent misalignment in parent–child perceptions and underscore the importance of integrating parents into well-being interventions and school–family partnerships to support adolescent well-being.

Authors

• Luofan Shu, Graduate Center - CUNY

• Anastasiya A. Lipnevich, City University of New York