Abstract
This study investigated how discrepancies between adolescents' and parents' endorsement of parental control contribute to adolescent depressive symptoms. Family conflict was hypothesized to mediate the link between parent-adolescent discrepancies and depressive symptoms. The sample consisted of 166 pairs of Chinese American adolescents and their parents. The results indicated that, as predicted, greater discrepancies between adolescents and their parents on parental control related to greater adolescent depressive symptoms. Furthermore, adolescent's perceived degree of family conflict partially mediated this relation. Both parents and adolescents are changing and adapting to their cultural contexts; some in synchrony and some not. Identifying areas where parents and adolescents diverge concerning values, behaviors, and beliefs, is an important avenue to understanding Chinese American adolescents' mental health.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 965-975 |
| Number of pages | 11 |
| Journal | Journal of Adolescence |
| Volume | 30 |
| Issue number | 6 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Dec 2007 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:This research was supported by Grant MH-61573 from the National Institute of Health. We are grateful to the adolescents and parents who participated in the study, and to Margarita Azmitia for helpful comments on an earlier version of this manuscript.
Keywords
- Chinese American adolescents
- Depressive symptoms
- Family conflict
- Intergenerational discrepancies
- Parental control