Poster #139 - Associations Between Observed Disclosure and Adjustment in Latinx Adolescents with Type 1 Diabetes

• In Event: 2-055 - Poster Session 06
  In Poster Session: PS 06 Section - Parenting & Parent-Child Relationships

Integrative Statement

Adherence and psychological well-being often deteriorate for individuals with type 1 diabetes (T1D) while they navigate adolescence (King et al., 2014). Parental involvement becomes increasingly important during adolescence, as adolescents must juggle effective diabetes management and a variety of social factors (Wiebe et al., 2016). Adolescent disclosure contributes to positive outcomes by facilitating parental knowledge regarding their child’s activities in healthy adolescents (Kearney & Bussey, 2015) and in those with T1D (Berg et al., 2017).
Rates of T1D are rising in Latinx adolescents (Mayer-Davis et al., 2017). Disclosure to parents in Latinx families may be particularly important given the central role of family in Latinx culture (Lopez, 2006). Indeed, in studies of Latinx youth, adolescent disclosure is the primary method by which parents gain knowledge about their adolescents’ diabetes-related problems (Tucker et al., 2018) and adolescent disclosure is associated with better diabetes management (Main et al., 2014). Despite the importance of disclosure for positive adjustment in adolescence, there has been little research conducted on adolescent disclosure on Latinx adolescents with T1D disclosure in real-time interactions with parents.
The current study builds upon previous findings by examining whether adolescent disclosure is associated with adolescent-reported relationship variables (e.g., secrecy from parents, parental acceptance) and adolescent/parent psychological adjustment (e.g., depressive and anxiety symptoms) in real-time interactions with both Latinx adolescents with T1D and their parents. The current study also explores whether there are differences in observed adolescent disclosure to parents as a function of adolescent age, primary language spoken, and parent and adolescent gender.
Parent-adolescent dyads engaged in a 10-minute discussion about a topic of frequent conflict related to the adolescent’s diabetes management. Participants were recruited from local hospitals and clinics. Data collection for the study is ongoing. The preliminary sample includes 38 adolescents (14 females, 9 males; Mage=12.76 years, SD=1.88) and the parent most involved in their diabetes care. Parent-adolescent conflict discussions were coded using modified versions of the Couples Interaction Coding System (Marsh, Busch, Cowan, & Cowan, 2002) and Supportive Behavior Coding System (Allen et al., 2012) for frequency, duration, and intensity (i.e., depth) of emotional and informational disclosures (see Main et al., in press).
Preliminary analyses revealed some parental gender differences in adolescent frequency, duration, and intensity of disclosures, with adolescents disclosing more with mothers compared with fathers (Table 1). There were no differences in adolescent disclosure as a function of adolescent age, gender, or language spoken during the conversation. Regarding associations between observed adolescent disclosure and parent-adolescent relationship quality and parent/adolescent adjustment, preliminary findings revealed that there was a positive association between duration of disclosure and mother (r=.44, p=.02) and father acceptance (r=.37, p=.047). Furthermore, greater adolescent disclosure was associated with fewer adolescent depressive symptoms (r=-.42, p=.02) and lower parental personal distress (r=-.38, p=.04).
Findings suggest that adolescent disclosure within this population is affected by parent gender. Furthermore, disclosure is associated with positive adolescent and parent mental health outcomes and greater parental acceptance in Latinx adolescents with T1D. Implications for studying parent-adolescent communication in understudied populations will be discussed.

Authors

• Janice Disla, UC Merced
  Presenting Author

• Alexandra Main, University of California, Merced
  Non-Presenting Author

• Deborah Wiebe, University of California, Merced
  Non-Presenting Author

• Linda Cameron, University of California, Merced
  Non-Presenting Author

• Jennifer Raymond, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles
  Non-Presenting Author