Families

• Adolescents’ Families– Historically– Today

• Impact– Conflict– Parenting Style– Attachment– Siblings– Divorce

Historical ChangePatterns over Two Centuries

Three changes over the past two centuries have influenced family life

1. Lower birth rate• In 1800, women in the U.S. had an average of 8 children• Today the average number of children is 2

2. Longer life expectancy• Up until 1900, the average life expectancy was about 45• Now the average human life expectancy is over 70

3. Movement from rural to urban residence• As recently at 1830, 70% of children lived in farm families• By 1930, this figure had dropped to 30%• Today it is less than 2%

Historical Change – The Last 50 years

The most dramatic changes have been in the following three areas:

1. Divorce Rate The current rate is so high that nearly half of the current generation

of young people are projected to experience their parents’ divorce by the time they reach their late teens

2. Single Parent Households Mothers represent 90% of custodial parents (parents who lives in the

same household as the children) Besides divorce there has been a rise in the proportion of children

born outside of marriage

3. Dual-Earner Families Employment among women with school-aged children has increased

from about ¼ to over ¾

Changes in Families

Age ofParents

FamilyIncome

Number ofSiblings

Only Child

Stay-at-Homemom

DualCareer

DIVERSITY

Fewer than 15% of today’s teens live with both biological parents in a household where the father is the only breadwinner.

Changes (cont’d)

• High rates of divorce and high rates of childbirth outside of marriage– Majority of adolescents born during 1990’s

will spend some of childhood/adolescence in a single-parent household

– Half of teens whose parents divorce will spend time in a stepfamily

• Therefore: many factors that could impact adolescents’ development

The Changing Functions of the Family

Function Performing Institution, 1800

Performing Institution, 2000

Educational Family School

Religious Family Church/Synagogue

Medical Family Medical Profession

Economic Support Family Employer

Recreational Family Entertainment Industry

Affective Family Family

The family in our time has mainly emotional or affective functionsTo provide love, nurturance and affection above all else.

Extended Family Relationships

• Traditional Cultures

– Young men generally remain in their family home after marriage and young women move into their new husband’s home

– This practice has been remarkably resistant to the influence of globalization

– This pattern is typical in India, China and most traditional cultures in Asia and Africa

– In these cultures children typically grow up in a house that includes parents, siblings as well as grandparents and often uncles, aunts and cousins

– Similar patterns of closeness to grandparents have been found among adolescents in American minority cultures

Extended Family Relationships

• American Majority Culture

– Adolescents’ contact with extended family members is relatively infrequent

– Extended family members often live many miles away

– American adolescents have significantly less contact with their extended family members as compared with adolescents in European countries because European extended family are more likely to live in close proximity

– An exception to this pattern occurs among adolescents in divorced families who tend to have increased contact with grandparents during adolescence (especially with their maternal grandfather)

Family Systems Approach

• To understand family functioning one must understand how each relationship within the family influences the family as a whole

• The family system is composed of a variety of subsystems

EXAMPLE: The subsystems in a family consisting of two parents and an adolescent would be:

1. Mother and adolescent2. Father and adolescent

3. Mother and father

Family Systems Approach

• Based on 2 key ideas:

1. Each subsystem influences every other subsystem in the family

2. A change in any family member or family subsystem results in a period of disequilibrium until the family system adjusts to the change

Adolescents’ Families

• Beginning of adolescence a time of family transformation– Renegotiation of power and responsibility

• Often coincides with parents’ own “midlife crisis”– Increased concern about bodies and physical

attractiveness– Beginning to feel that the possibilities for change

are limited; occupational plateau

Changes in Family Relationships: Family Needs

• Changes in the family as a whole unit • Changes in economic circumstances

– Large anticipated expenditures (e.g., college)– Parents belong to “Sandwich generation”

• Changes in family’s relationship to other social institutions – Increasing importance of peers

• Changes in family functions – Family’s role during adolescence less clear than infancy

or childhood

Transformations in Family Relationships

• Changes in the balance of power– Shift from an asymmetrical relationship toward a

more equal relationship with parents

• The role of puberty– Biological/cognitive maturation at puberty throws

the family system out of balance

• Violations of Expectations– Cognitive changes in views of family expectations

Changes in Family Relationships: The Parents

• Parents of adolescents– Increased concern about bodies, physical

attractiveness, and sexual appeal– Midlife crisis (most are in 40s)– Beginning to feel that the possibilities for change are

limited– Occupational plateau

• Mental health of parents

Sex Differences in Family Relationships

• Minimal differences between sons and daughters in family relations– Similar degrees of closeness, types of rules, patterns of activities

• Sex of the parent may be a more important influence than sex of the teen– Teens tend to be closer to their mothers, have more intense

relationships– Fathers rely on mothers for information about adolescent,

perceived as distant authority figures

Families (cont’d)

• Overall: get along well, feel close to parents (particularly mother), respect parents’ judgments– Tend to disagree over mundane issues– Disagreements stem from different perspectives– Part of problem: method of conflict resolution

• Similar beliefs about fundamental attitudes and beliefs– Differ in opinions of personal taste (dress, leisure)

Families (cont’d)• Progressively less time spent together

– 5th graders: 25-30% of waking hours– 12th graders: 12-15% of waking hours

Parent-Adolescent Conflict

– G. Stanley Hall (1904)– Anna Freud (1946)

– Both researchers made it sound as though it was universal and inevitable that ALL adolescents rebel against their parents and that ALL parents and adolescents experience intense conflict for many years

How accurate are these early theories?

Is There A Generation Gap?

• Popular advice for parents of teens– Emphasizes nonnormative development, stereotypes of strained

relationships– Self-fulfilling prophecy

• Research indicates– Very little emotional distance between teens and parents– Parents and teens have similar beliefs about core values

• If generation gap, it exists in matters of personal taste (e.g., style of dress, music preferences, leisure activities)

Parent-Adolescent Conflict

• Few scholars on adolescence believe this anymore!

• Adolescents and their parents agree on many of the most important aspects of their views of life

• Studies in the 1960’s (which were the first to dispel the stereotype of ‘storm and stress’) found that

– a great majority of adolescents like their parents, trust and admire them

– when disagreement does occur it was usually over seemingly minor issues (e.g. clothes, curfews)

Conflict Details

• Conflict with parents increases sharply in early adolescence and remains high for several years

• Conflict in adolescence is especially frequent and intense between mothers and daughters

• It is only in late adolescence and emerging adulthood that conflict with parents diminishes substantially

Reasons for Conflict in Early Adolescence

• Biological Changes– Adolescents become bigger and stronger physically

making it more difficult for parents to impose their authority by virtue of their greater physical presence

• Cognitive Changes– Increased abilities for thinking abstracting and with

more complexity make adolescents better arguers and it becomes more difficult for parents to prevail quickly in arguments with their children

What Do Parents and Teens

Fight About?• Mundane issues, not big ones (e.g.,

curfew, leisure time, cleaning room)

• Disagreements stem from different perspectives on issues– Parents see issues as a matter of right or

wrong (social conventions or moral issues)

– Teens see issues as a matter of personal choice (e.g., how to dress)

Culture and Conflict with Parents

• Conflict is not universal and “natural”

• Biological and cognitive changes take place among adolescents in all cultures

• Parent-adolescent conflict is not typical in all cultures

THER

E FORE

Culture can take the raw Culture can take the raw materials of nature and shape materials of nature and shape them in highly diverse waysthem in highly diverse ways

Conflict in Traditional Cultures

• It is rare for parents and adolescents to engage in the kind of frequent, petty conflicts typical of parent-adolescent relationship in the American majority culture

• Reasons:– Economic: In non-industrialized traditional cultures, family

members tend to rely a great deal on each other economically

– Culture: Cultural beliefs about parental authority and the appropriate degree of adolescent independence

Is There Emotional Distance Between Teens

and Parents?

• Very little emotional distance between parents and adolescents (unlike stereotypes)

• Most Teens– Feel close to parents– Respect parents’ judgment– Feel loved by parents– Respect parents as individuals

• 20% say their top concern is not having enough time with parents

Parents and Emerging Adults

• Typically relationships between parents and emerging adults improve once the young person leaves home

• Emerging adults report greater closeness and fewer negative feelings toward their parents after moving– Those who had moved at least an hour away by car from

their parents reported • highest levels of closeness to their parents • valued their parents’ opinions most highly

– Those who remained home• Poorest relations with their parents in these respects

Parenting Styles

• Baumrind’s classification: – Parental responsiveness (warmth)

• The degree to which parents are sensitive to their children’s needs and the extent to which they express love, warmth, and concern for their children

• Degree to which parent responds to child’s needs in an accepting, supportive manner

– Parental demandingness (control)• The degree to which parents set down rules and

expectations for behavior and require their children to comply with them

• Degree to which parent expects/demands mature, responsible behavior from the child

• Parental monitoring vs. psychological control

Styles (cont’d)

High Low

High Authoritative Indulgent

Low Authoritarian Indifferent

Demandingness

Responsiveness

The Interaction of Demandingness and

Responsiveness

High Responsiveness

High Demandingness

Low Responsiveness

Low Demandingness

Authoritative

Indulgent

Authoritarian

Indifferent

Styles (cont’d)

• Authoritative parents - warm but firm– Emotional autonomy granting

• Authoritarian parents - obedience and conformity • Indulgent parents - benign, passive• Indifferent parents - minimize time and energy spent

interacting with their child

How parents might sound?

Authoritative

Indulgent

Authoritarian

Indifferent

“Do it my way because I said so! Don’t argue with me … it’s my house and my rules”

“No you can’t go to the mall today. You know the family made plans to go to see your sick aunt. How about we drop you off at your friend’s house on the way home. Good enough compromise?”

Adolescent: “Mom are you home … mom {no answer} … I guess I’m in charge of dinner again

“Sure you can have a party in the house while we’re away – the key to the liquor cabinet in is you father’s sock drawer”

Styles (cont’d)

• Authoritative: linked with positive outcomes– Self-esteem, social skills, intellectual

growth, development of autonomy & identity, healthy peer relationships

• Older adolescents (Weiss & Schwarz, 1996)

– Personality (more agreeable, openness)– Academic achievement, less drug and

alcohol use, positive adjustment

Styles (con’t)

• Why is authoritative parenting effective?– Balance between restrictiveness and

autonomy– Gradually acquire independence and build

up self-reliance– Enabling interactions or discussions rather

than constraining– Sets stage for strong attachment

Adolescents who differ in temperament are affected in different ways by the same parenting

Parenting and TemperamentParenting and Temperament

Styles (con’t)

Self-Reliance

2.8 2.9 3 3.1

Indifferent-uninvolved

Indulgent-permissive

Authoritative

Authoritarian

Styles (con’t)

Grade-Point Average

2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 2.9

Indifferent-uninvolved

Indulgent-permissive

Authoritative

Authoritarian

Styles (con’t)

School

2 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5

Indifferent-uninvolved

Indulgent-permissive

Authoritative

Authoritarian

American Parenting Styles

• What beliefs are reflected in the parenting styles?– Research on child rearing goals shows that American parents

tend to value independence highly as a quality they wish to promote in their children

– Authoritarian parenting clearly discourages independence but the other three parenting styles which account for 85% (shown in the previous graph) reflect parents’ beliefs that it is good for adolescents to learn autonomy

A More Complex Picture of Parenting

Effects• Reciprocal or Bidirectional Effects

Adolescents not only are affected by their parents but also affect their parent in return

• Complexity of Siblings Most research on the effects of parenting styles involves only one adolescent per family

The few studies that have included more than one adolescent per family have shown that adolescent siblings within the same family often give very different accounts of what their parents are like toward them

A More Complex Picture of Parenting Effects

• Differential Parenting– Parent’s behavior often differs toward siblings within the same

family

• Non-shared Environmental Influences– Differential parenting can result in non-shared environmental

influences meaning that the adolescents experience quite different family environments and the consequences of these differences are evident in adolescents’ behaviour and psychological functioning

Parenting in Other Cultures

• The most striking difference in parenting styles is how rare the authoritative parenting style is in non-Western cultures

• Parents expect that their authority will be obeyed, without question and without requiring an explanation

• The role of the parent carries greater inherent authority than it does in the West

• Parents are not supposed to provide reasons why they should be respected and obeyed

Does this mean that the typical parenting styles in traditional cultures is authoritarian?

No. The fact is they do not fit very will into the parenting scheme presented. They are generally closest to authoritative parents because like them they tend to be high in demandingness and high in responsiveness. However their demandingness is very different from authoritative parents in American or Western cultures

Traditional Parenting Style Two Examples

• Asian Americans– Chao (2001) argues that White

researchers misunderstand Asian American parenting and mislabel it as authoritarian

– Asian adolescents show none of the negative effects typically associated with authoritarian parenting

– They have higher educational achievement, lower rates of behavioural problems and lowers rates of psychological problems

• Latino Americans– Latino parents in American

society have also typically been classified as authoritarian

– The Latino cultural belief system places emphasis on respecto (respect and obedience to parents and elders – especially fathers)

– Latino cultural beliefs also believe is familismo (love, closeness and mutual obligations of Latino family life)

Ethnic Differences in Parenting Styles

• Authoritative parenting is less prevalent among African-American, Asian-American, or Hispanic-American families than among white families

• Beneficial effects are found for all ethnic groups

Ethnic Differences in Parenting Styles

• Authoritarian parenting is more prevalent among ethnic minority than among white families (even when SES is taken into account)

• Adverse effects are greater for white adolescents than for ethnic minorities– May carry benefits for ethnic minorities who

live in dangerous areas

American Parenting Styles

Authoritarian parenting was more common in minority families than in White families

Authoritative parenting was somewhat more common in middle-class families and White families

Autonomy and Attachment in the Family

• Adolescents who are permitted to assert their own opinions within a family context that is secure and loving– develop higher self-esteem– develop more mature coping abilities

• Adolescents whose autonomy is squelched– at risk for developing feelings of depression

• Adolescents who do not feel connected – more likely than their peers to develop behavior problems

Attachment• Quality of relationship between parents

and child/adolescent– Related to: competence, fewer feelings of

depression, better mental well-being, identity development, less problem-behavior

• Sets stage for other healthy relationships as well with peers, siblings, romantic partners

Attachment Theory

• Originally developed by John Bowlby (1969, 1973, 1980)

• Attachments between parents and children have an evolutionary basis in the need for vulnerable young members of the species to stay in close proximity to adults who will care for and protect them

• Mary Ainsworth (1967, 1982) described two general types of attachment:– Secure attachment

• In which infants use the mother as a ‘secure base form which to explore’ but seek physical comfort and consolation from her if frightened or threatened

– Insecure attachment• Infants are wary of exploring the environment and resist or avoid the

mother when she attempts to offer comfort or consolation

Research on the Effects of Secure Attachment in Adolescence and

Emerging Adulthood

• Effects on Adolescents– Adolescents’ well being– Higher self-esteem– Better psychological and

physical health– Tend to have closer

relationships with friends and romantic partners

– More autonomous and self-reliant

• Effects on Emerging Adults– Higher educational and

occupational attainment– Lower psychological

problems– Lower drug use

Secure attachment to parents in adolescence is related to a variety of favorable outcomes

Positive Parenting

• Warm, affectionate, caring, supportive, emotionally attuned and emotionally literate – positive attention, no door mats

• Clear and appropriate boundaries and supervision, backed up by positive discipline– negotiated rules, consistency, agreed sanctions for

inappropriate behaviour, no hitting or shouting, allowing children their own space, handling conflict helpfully

• Age appropriate expectations, responsibility and challenges – providing opportunities to try new things, but not over

stimulation, encouragement for trying, not for succeeding

Outcomes of unhelpful parenting

• antisocial behaviour

• delinquency

• criminality

• violence

• poor social competence

• poor peer relationships

• poor educational outcomes

Odds of poor mental health age 26 yrs according

to relationship with parents age 16 yrs

0.5 1 1.5

Nagging/complaining

Strict/bossy

Don’t understand me

Treat like child

Overprotective

Generous

Helpful

Loving/ caring

Can talk to them

Allow me freedom

1970 Birth Cohort : adjusted for sex, social class and mental health age 16 years

***

*

***

**

***

**

***

***

***

Odds of poor general health age 26 yrs according to relationship with parents age 16 yrs

0.5 1 1.5

Nagging/complaining

Strict/bossy

Don’t understand them

Don’t understand me

Treat like child

Overprotective

Generous

Helpful

Loving/ caring

Understanding

Allow freedom

1970 Birth Cohort : adjusted for sex, social class and mental health age 16 years

*

*

*

***

Behavioral Genetics: Why Are Siblings So Different?

Siblings may have very different family experiencesSiblings may have very different family experiences Treated differently by parentsTreated differently by parents Perceive similar experiences in different waysPerceive similar experiences in different ways

Unequal treatment often creates conflict among Unequal treatment often creates conflict among siblings, but most (75%) treatment is not differentialsiblings, but most (75%) treatment is not differential

If all siblings are treated well, research shows that If all siblings are treated well, research shows that differential treatment can actually be a good thingdifferential treatment can actually be a good thing Leads to siblings getting along betterLeads to siblings getting along better Less sibling rivalryLess sibling rivalry

Sibling deidentificationSibling deidentification Trying to distinguish self from sibling can also diminish Trying to distinguish self from sibling can also diminish feelings of competitionfeelings of competition

Sibling Relationships

• Adolescent’s relationships with siblings – become more equal– become more distant– become less emotionally intense

• Quality of sibling relationships are affected by quality of parent-child relationship

• Quality of adolescent-sibling relationship affects adolescent’s relationships with peers

Gene-environment Correlations

1. Passive

2. Reactive (Evocative)

3. Active (Niche-picking)

Child’s Genes

Child’sEnvironment

Child’sPhenotype

Common Sense

Gene-Environment Correlation

Parents’Genotype

Child’s Genes

Child’sEnvironment

Child’sPhenotype

Passive

Gene-Environment Correlation

Parents’Genotype

Child’s Genes

Child’sEnvironment

Child’sPhenotype

Reactive (Evocative)

Gene-Environment Correlation

Parents’Genotype

Biological RiskFor Problem Behaviors

Coercive/Abrasive Interactions and Harsh DisciplineFrom Adoptive

Parents

Adolescent Oppositional and Conduct-

disordered Problems

Reactive (Evocative)

Gene-Environment CorrelationRiggins-Caspers et al. (2003)

Parents’Genotype

Child’s Genes

Child’sEnvironment

Child’sPhenotype

Active (Niche-picking)

Gene-Environment Correlation

Gene-Environment Correlation

Evocative Gene Environment Correlation for

Popularity and 5-HT2A Polymorphism

-0.7

-0.6

-0.5

-0.4

-0.3

-0.2

-0.1

0

0.1

0.2

0.3

AA genotype GA and GG genotypes

5-HT2A Genotype

Mean Evoked Popularity (Z-score)

Sample 1Sample 2

Gene-Environment Correlation

Evocative Correlation Between Genetic Predisposition

-3

-2.5

-2

-1.5

-1

-0.5

0

0.5

1

1.5

2

Multiple DisorderSingle DisorderNo Disorder

Biological Parents' Psychological Status

Adoptive Father's Parenting Behaviors

HostilityWarmthHarsh/Inconsistent DisciplineNurturant/Involved Parenting

Ge et al (1996)

Divorce

• Process of going through a divorce, not resulting family structure, matters most

• Adverse consequences of divorce are linked to exposure to marital conflict and disorganized parenting

• “Sleeper effect” for adolescents• More problems if a remarriage occurs during early

adolescence rather than childhood

Changes in Divorce Rate

Americans have the highest divorce rate of any country in the world

Effects of Divorce – Family Process

• Family process is the quality of family members’ relationships, how much warmth or hostility there is between them, and so on

• Three factors of family process with regard to the effects of children and adolescents of divorce

1. Exposure to conflict between parents– Exposure to parents’ conflicts, more than the specific event of divorce is

especially damaging

2. Affects on parenting practices– Divorce is stressful and painful to most of the adults who experience it

and it affects their role as parents

3. Increases in economic stress– Money is tight in mother-headed households– Income in mother-headed households decreases by an average of 40%

to 50%

The Changing Family: Divorce

The Longer-Term Effects of Divorce– Individuals whose parents divorce during

preadolescence and adolescence often demonstrate adjustment difficulties later

Effects of Divorce• Young people whose parents have divorced are

at higher risk for a wide variety of negative outcomes:

– Behavior problems

– Psychological distress

– Lower academic achievement

– Higher rates of drug and alcohol use

– Initiate sexual intercourse at an earlier age

– Depression and withdrawal

– Anxiousness

– Less likely to attend college

Effects of Divorce

• In emerging adulthood, the effects of parental divorce are evident in:

– Greater problems in forming close romantic relationships

– Wariness of entering marriage

– Their determination to avoid divorce

Interesting Footnote: The risk of divorce is higher for young people from divorced families

The Changing Family: Divorce

• Custody, Contact, and Conflict following Divorce– It is the quality of the relationship

between the adolescent’s divorced parents (not which one he or she lives with), that matters most

Effects of divorce on the development of emotional problems: Effects of divorce on the development of emotional problems: A long-term study of British individuals (Cherlin et al, 1998)A long-term study of British individuals (Cherlin et al, 1998)

Family in a Changing Society

• Implications of high divorce rates and high rates of childbirth outside of marriage– Most American adolescents born during 1990s

will spend some of their childhood or adolescence in a single-parent household

– Half of teens whose parents divorce will spend time in a stepfamily

Effects of Single Parenthood

• Just as in divorced families, adolescents in never-married, single-parent households are at greater risk for a variety of problems– Low school achievement– Depression– Anxiety– Substance use – Early initiation of sexual activity

Interesting Footnote: African American families have a long tradition of extended family household and an extended family structure has been found to

provide important assistance to single parent families

The Changing Family: Economic Strain and Poverty

• Parents under financial stress are harsher, more inconsistent, less involved

• Adolescents living in these conditions have greater risk of– psychological

difficulties– problem behaviors

Effects of Dual-Earner Families

• Effects on Girls– Often quite positive

– Tend to become more confident

– Have higher career aspirations

• Effects on Boys– More negative than the

effects on girls

– Have more arguments with their mothers and siblings

– Poorer school performance for boys in middle-class and upper-middle-class families

The effects of dual-earner families depend on the gender of the adolescent

The Changing Family: Remarriage

• 75% men and 67% women remarry after divorce

• Adolescents growing up in stepfamilies often have more problems than their peers

• African-American teens more likely to experience parental divorce and less likely to experience parents’ remarriage

Effects of Remarriage• Adolescents typically take a turn for the worse when their

mothers remarry

• Adolescents in stepfamilies have a greater likelihood for a variety of problems:– Depression– Anxiety– Conduct disorders– Lower academic achievement– More likely to engage in delinquent activities– More problems adjusting to the remarriage

– Girls tend to have an especially negative reaction to their parents’ remarriage

The Importance of the Family in Adolescent Development

• Adolescents who feel that their parents or guardians are “there” for them – caring, involved, and accepting – are healthier, happier, and more competent than their peers

• Despite growing importance of peers, adolescents still need love and support of adults who care about them