Marital satisfaction and parental style as predictors of adolescent adjustment: a comparison study of boys and girls
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The Department of Human Development and Family Studies focuses on the interactions among individuals, families, and their resources and environments throughout their lifespans. It consists of three majors: Child, Adult, and Family Services (preparing students to work for agencies serving children, youth, adults, and families); Family Finance, Housing, and Policy (preparing students for work as financial counselors, insurance agents, loan-officers, lobbyists, policy experts, etc); and Early Childhood Education (preparing students to teach and work with young children and their families).
History
The Department of Human Development and Family Studies was formed in 1991 from the merger of the Department of Family Environment and the Department of Child Development.
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1991-present
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- College of Human Sciences (parent college)
- Department of Child Development (predecessor)
- Department of Family Environment (predecessor)
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Abstract
This study examined the effect of marital satisfaction and parenting style on three measures of adolescent adjustment: distress, delinquency, and self-esteem. The sample consisted of 451 intact two-parent households with a seventh grade adolescent. The study hypothesized: (1) Positive couple communication style, couple interaction style, and husband/wife positive affect will facilitate positive husband/wife marital satisfaction; (2) Positive couple communication style, couple interaction style, and husband/wife positive affect will facilitate positive parenting style; (3) High husband/wife marital satisfaction will be directly associated with positive husband/wife parenting style; (4) High husband/wife marital satisfaction will be directly associated with positive adolescent adjustment; (5) High husband/wife marital satisfaction will be indirectly associated with positive adolescent adjustment through positive husband/wife parenting style, (6) Positive husband/wife parenting style will be associated with positive adolescent adjustment; and (7) Boys will respond more negatively to low marital satisfaction and negative husband/wife parenting style than girls.;Support was found for hypothesis 1, and partially supported for hypothesis 2. Husband/wife interaction style and husband/wife affect was not significant in predicting husband/wife parenting style. Hypothesis 3 was not supported. Marital satisfaction did not significantly predict husband/wife parenting style. Only husbands' marital satisfaction was a significant predictor of adolescent self-esteem in regard to hypothesis 4. There was no support for hypothesis 5 with any of the adolescent adjustment variables. Hypothesis 6 was partially supported by husbands' parenting style with adolescent self-esteem. Hypothesis 7 was not supported. There were no differences for boys and girls with level of marital satisfaction and parenting style.;The study also makes a distinction by removing affective components from the variable couple communication style. Affective components are placed under couple interaction style. This distinction clarifies the difference between communicative skills and affect. The results suggest that affect, not communicative skills are important in marital satisfaction.