Parental behavior and the quality of adolescent friendships: A social-contextual perspective

On the basis of an evolving social-contextual perspective, the authors predicted and found that socioeconomic advantage in terms of income and parental education promotes supportive and inhibits hostile parental behaviors toward an adolescent child (N = 221). These parental behaviors predicted similar actions by the child toward a close friend 4 years later. In turn adolescent supportiveness promoted close friendship ties, whereas hostility diminished the quality of friendships. The results support the notion that, to a significant degree, the quality of family interactions: (a) arises from the social context surrounding the family, (b) is transmitted across generations, and (c) has a demonstrable impact on the quality of adolescents social ties outside the family.