Journal of Youth and Adolescence, Vol. 19, No. 4, 1990
Adolescents' Perceptions of the Nature of Their Communication with Parents Patricia N o l l e r ~ and Victor J. Callan 2
ReceivedMay 18, 1989; acceptedNovember 20, 1989 This study examines the effects o f the age and sex o f adolescent and the sex o f parent upon adolescents" perceptions o f the nature o f their communication with each parent. Two hundred and ninety-six adolescents aged 13-17 years completed a communication schedule, rating 14 content areas along six process dimensions:frequency o f conversation, initiator, levels o f recognition o f adolescents" opinion, self-disclosure, domination, and levels o f satisfaction. Multivariate analyses o f variance were conducted separately for each process dimension. Frequency ratings revealed that adolescent females of all ages reported talking more often with mothers than did adolescent males. Adolescent males, however, believed they talked more often than did females with fathers about interests, sexual issues, and general problems. Mothers were seen to initiate more conversations than fathers on a wide range o f topics. Mothers were also perceived as more likely to recognize and accept the adolescents" opinions. Adolescent females believed they disclosed more to mothers than fathers, but males believed they disclosed equally to both parents. Males disclosed more to fathers than did females about their sexual or other problems, while females disclosed more often overall to their mothers than did males. Adolescent males were equally satisfied with their discussions with both parents, but females were more satisfied about conversations with mothers rather than fathers. In sum, the results suggest that mothers" more
~Reader in Psychology, University of Queensland, Ph.D. in Social Psychology, University of Queensland. Her current interests are in the areas of marital and family communication, adolescence, and personal relationships. To whom reprint requests should be addressed at Department of Psychology, University of Queensland, St. Lucia, 4067, Queensland, Australia. 2Reader in Psychology, University of Queensland, Ph.D. in Social Psychology, Australian National University, with research interests in adolescence, marital communication, and childless couples. 349 0047-2891/90/0800-0349506.00/0
9 1990 Plenum Publishing Corporation
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frequent initiation o f discussions with their younger adolescents and their greater recognition of their opinions lead to older adolescems interacting more with mothers than fathers.
INTRODUCTION If we are to tap the complexity and variety of parent-adolescent communications, it seems critical to consider not only the topic and the quality of the communication, but also differences in communication according to the sex of the parents, and sex and age of the adolescents. While a large number of studies have detailed specific features of parent-adolescent communication, only recently have researchers attempted to study the variety of factors that may simultaneously shape the nature of the communication. Such studies are important as several theories of adolescence propose that the stresses related to this stage are due to the adolescents' lack of interpersonal skills to cope with changes necessary to move toward greater independence and autonomy (see Hartup, 1979; Montemayor, 1983). Supportive communication in the family is seen as one factor that encourages the development of social and coping skills, and more positive identities among adolescents (Chartier and Chartier, 1975; Cooper et al., 1982). In particular, a more relational view of adolescence (see Grotevant and Cooper, 1986) describes a family environment in which changes in communication are moderate and through negotiation, with the result that parents come to show greater respect for the opinions of growing adolescents, and allow them more control. Older adolescents seem to change their relationships with parents, developing new forms of interaction involving reduced levels of conflict (Jacob, 1974; Steinberg and Hill, 1978). They renegotiate their status in the parent-child relationship (Hunter, 1985; Hunter and Youniss, 1982), and their gains in status and control may emerge in their perceptions about the quality of their communication with parents. Research into the topics of parent-adolescent conversations reveals that the majority of arguments between parents and adolescents are about dayto-day living and family matters: personal hygiene, disobedience, school work, social activities and friendships, chores around the house, and arguments with siblings (Caplow et al., 1982; Csikszentmihalyi and Larson, 1984; Montemayor, 1982, 1983). In fact, Montemayor (1983) draws together data to show that the arguments between parents and adolescents in the 1970s and 1980s are similar in content to those reported by Lynd and Lynd (1929). Bengtson and Starr (1975) showed that parents and adolescents tend not to argue about some of the areas of great difference (sex, drugs, religion, politics) and others (Noller and Bagi, 1985; Thornburg, 1981) have found that families avoid potentially explosive issues such as sexuality.
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Some recent studies have adopted a more complex view of parent-adolescent communication, investigating sex and age effects, and tapping various areas of communication and process variables. Youniss and Smollar (1985) studied parent-adolescent communication for adolescents aged 15-18 years, across six different areas (school-career, societal views, intrafamily issues, friendship, sex and marriage, doubts and fears) and four different process variables (openness-mutuality, mutual settlement and negotiation of disagreements, guardedness in communication, and imposition of unilateral settlements). While results considered differences in communication patterns by sex o f parent, there was no attempt to relate process variables to areas of communication. Youniss and Smollar found that adolescents had quite different views of their communication with each parent. Adolescents, particularly daughters, reported generally stronger relationships with mothers than fathers. Mothers were seen as more open, understanding, and accepting; interested in the day-to-day problems o f their teenagers; and able to negotiate agreements. Fathers, on the other hand, were seen as more judgmental; less willing to be involved in discussions of feelings, self-doubts, and problems of adjustment; and more likely to impose their authority on the adolescents. Adolescents claimed that they were more likely to limit their communication with their fathers, and to be more defensive and guarded toward them. Findings with regard to sex differences in parent-adolescent interaction are mixed, and seem to depend upon whether the variable under consideration is conflict or communication. While adolescents seem to report more conflict with mothers than fathers (Montemayor and Hanson, 1985; Smith and Forehand, 1986), several researchers find that adolescents, especially females, report more frequent and more positive communication with mothers than fathers (Barnes and Olson, 1985; Youniss and SmoUar, 1985), especially more self-disclosure and openness. Perhaps adolescents have less conflict with fathers than mothers because most of their meaningful communication is with their mothers. In another attempt to consider content areas and process variables, Noller and Bagi (1985) examined sex differences in parent-adolescent communication across 14 different areas (these were selected to cover both intraand extrafamily issues, and both general societal issues and specific issues) and six process dimensions (frequency, initiation, self-disclosure, the extent the parent recognizes the adolescent's views, the parent's domination, and the adolescent's satisfaction with the communication). In contrast to Youniss and Smollar's (1985) study, more areas of communication were investigated, and process variables were related to communication areas to determine differences across areas. The 18- and 19-year-olds surveyed reported more communication with mothers than fathers across a broad range of topics, except for politics, where they talked more with fathers. In terms of process
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variables, daughters talked more to their mothers than did sons, and disclosed more to both parents than did sons. No differences, however, emerged in sons' and daughters' levels of initiation of conversations, dominance, and levels of satisfaction, or in the recognition their opinions received from parents. The present study continues on from the earlier studies of Youniss and Smollar (1985) and Noller and Bagi (1985). Our focus was upon content and process variables in parent-adolescent communication, and differences in perceptions of male and female adolescents aged 13-17 years. It was expected that adolescents would perceive mothers as the parent who was the focus of their conversations more than fathers. Adolescent females especially were expected to report higher levels of self-disclosure and more frequent discussion in conversations with their mothers, and to be more satisfied with the level of communication. Mothers were expected to be seen more often as the initiators of conversations. We were also interested in determining whether younger adolescents' perceptions of their communication with parents could help explain sex differences observed in late adolescence (e.g., Noller and Bagi, 1985). For example, if younger adolescents believe fathers dominate them more and give them less recognition, such a finding might help explain the reason that older adolescents communicate less with their fathers. Changes in levels of recognition, dominance, and disclosure were expected over the age span of 13-17 years. Levels of self-disclosure were predicted to be greater for older adolescents, especially by girls to their mothers. As evidence of more mutual interaction (see Grotevant and Cooper, 1986), older adolescents were expected to report more self-disclosure, more initiation, and less dominance. Also because of these changes, older adolescents of both sexes were expected to be more satisfied with the quality of their communication with both parents. While it is now common to study parent-offspring interactions using observational methods (e.g., Callan and Noller, 1986; Noller and Callan, 1986, 1988; Cooper et al., 1982; Patterson, 1982) rather than self-reports, observational studies cannot answer questions about typical behavior. As Montemayor and Hanson (1985) note, data gathered using structured observational situations are more useful for showing what parents and adolescents can do, than what they typically do. Both methodologies have problems related to validity and reliability, and the suitability of one methodology over another depends on the research question being asked. If the interest is in interpersonal events (or actual behavior) and the outsider's perceptions of these, then videotapes coded by trained observers are most useful. If the interest is in subjective events (Huston and Robins, 1982) or the perceptions of the individual family members, then some form of questionnaire or interview is very appropriate. The presumption is that perceptions should be con-
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gruent with actual interactions, and importantly, should allow us to gain insights into the meaning adolescents attach to interactions with their parents (Youniss and Smollar, 1985). For the question at issue here, adolescents' perceptions of their typical communication with their parents, self-report is the most useful method.
METHOD Sample
Subjects were 296 (160 males, 136 females) adolescents aged 13-17 years: 54 of them were 13-year-olds, 65 were 14-year-olds, 43 were 15-year-olds, 63 were 16-year-olds, and 71 were 17-year-olds. There were approximately equal numbers of numbers of males and females in each age group. Adolescents were enlisted by students in college classes, who located one male and one female aged between 13 and 17. Only one adolescent from each twoparent family was surveyed. The sample was urban and had a bias toward middle-class, tertiary educated parents (26~ of sample). Parents with quite low educational levels were also well represented. Parent-Adolescent Communication Inventory
In their homes, all adolescents completed the Parent-Adolescent Communication Inventory (Noller and Bagi, 1985), once for their communication with mothers alone and once for communication with fathers alone. The inventory is designed to examine both process and content aspects of parent-adolescent communication. The six process dimensions, based on past research, include ratings along 6-point scales of frequency (1, rarely discuss this, 6, frequent long discussions), initiation (1, you always initiate the discussion, parents are never interested, 6, parents always initiate, you are never interested), recognition (1, your feelings and views are not recognized, 6, your feelings and views are always recognized and accepted), self-disclosure (1, you have not disclosed any of your views and feelings in this area, 6, have disclosed all aspects of your views and feelings in this area), domination (1, parents totally dominate the discussion, no scope for the expression of your views, 6, you totally dominate the discussion, parents have no scope for the expression of their views), and satisfaction (1, you are very dissatisfied with the discussion in the area, 6, very satisfied with discussions in this area). These six ratings were made to each of 14 content areas that represent two basic dimensions-reference (external social vs. intrafamily) and specificity (general
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principles vs. specific issues; see Noller and Bagi, 1985). The 14 content areas are social issues, interests, sex roles, sex roles in family, a general philosophy, family's philosophy, rules of society, personal relationships, sexual attitudes, politics, sexual information, problems of sexuality, general problems, and future plans. Within the schedule, respondents were given detailed descriptions of the issues to be considered within each content area and these are presented in Table I.
Table I
1. Current social issues. This area includes discussion of issues such as, drug and alcohol addiction, crime and abortion.
2. Your interests. This area would include any discussion of your tastes in music, fashion, sport or social interests.
3. Sex roles. This area covers any discussion o f the sex roles that exist in our society. This
4. 5. 6. 7.
8. 9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
could include issues such as the function of sex roles, and whether they are beneficial or detrimental to society. This area also includes the discussion o f specific issues, such as women in the work force, and the role of women and m e n in both the family and in the society. The relevance o f sex roles f o r your family. This area covers any discussion of the role of the father and mother in your family, as well as the roles of husband and wife. Generalphilosophy. This area includes discussion of issues such as the nature of h u m a n existence, the implications and validity of various religious perspectives. This section would also cover such questions on whether or not God exists or whether there is life after death. Implications o f your family's philosophy on the family itself. This area includes any discussion of your family's attitudes towards religion, i.e., whether or not religion should be a part of the family's activities. Rules and conventions o f society. This area would cover discussions o f topics such as the function and importance in having social rules and conventions, e.g., laws and more subtle conventions of behavior such as etiquette. This area would also include the discussion of the importance of such rules and conventions within your family. Relations. This area includes discussion of such issues as the function and importance of the family unit to society, including attitudes toward the family unit, marriage, and divorce. Attitudes toward sexuality. This area covers discussion of issues such as the function and importance of sex in a relationship, and whether sex should be confined to the marital relationship, i.e., the issue of premarital sexual relationships. This area also applies to the effect of your parents' attitudes in this area on your lifestyle, e.g., discussion of behaviors such as dating. Politics. This area of discussion would cover such areas as various political ideologies, their implications and function, as well as discussion of the voting and political preferences of the members of your family. Information concerning sexuality. This area covers occasions when the parent is giving specific information concerning sexual behaviors or sexual development. Information could be given on topics such as male and female physiological development, sexual behaviors, the process of reproduction, contraception, masturbation, and sexually transmitted diseases. Your queries and problems in the area o f sexuality. This area covers any discussion of your questions concerning the area of sexual behavior and development. It also includes the discussion of your problems in understanding any of the information, or problems that you might have come across in situations that you have experienced. Generalproblems in your life. This area includes the discussion of any problems that you might be experiencing excluding the area of sexuality, e.g., problems at home, with friends, or at school. Your plans f o r the future. This area includes any general discussion of your plans for the future, e.g., relationships, work or academic.
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RESULTS Overview
Separate 2 • 2 • 5 multivariate analyses o f variance ( M A N O V A s ) were c o n d u c t e d f o r each o f the six d i m e n s i o n s m e a s u r e d o n the c o m m u n i c a t i o n s c h e d u l e - f r e q u e n c y , initiation, recognition, self-disclosure, d o m i n a t i o n , a n d s a t i s f a c t i o n . Between-subjects factors were the sex a n d age o f t h e a d o l e s c e n t (13-, 14-, 15-, 16-, a n d 17-year-old). T h e w i t h i n - s u b j e c t m e a s u r e was the sex o f the p a r e n t a b o u t w h o m the m e a s u r e was c o m p l e t e d . D e p e n d e n t variables were the 14 areas o f c o m m u n i c a t i o n (e.g., social issues, interests) r a t e d o n each d i m e n s i o n . W h e r e i n t e r a c t i o n s o c c u r r e d , simple effects a n d p o s t hoc analyses ( N e w m a n - K e u l s ) were p e r f o r m e d . A s u m m a r y o f M A N O V A s is p r e s e n t e d in T a b l e II.
Frequency
The m e a n s for frequency showed t h a t adolescents rarely r e p o r t e d m o r e t h a n o c c a s i o n a l discussion o n a n y t o p i c . F o r several topics, the m e a n s were p a r t i c u l a r l y low, rarely exceeding 2. Interests a n d general p r o b l e m s were discussed m o r e frequently. T h e M A N O V A revealed a significant m a i n effect for sex o f p a r e n t , which was s u b s u m e d in a sex o f p a r e n t b y sex o f a d o l e s cent i n t e r a c t i o n ( F = 4.43, df = 14,274, p < .001). U n i v a r i a t e effects were significant for 7 o f the 14 variables (see T a b l e III).
Table !1. Summary of MANOVAs for Each Process Variable
Effect Frequency Main effect for sex of parent Interaction of sex of parent and sex of adolescent Initiation Main effect for sex of parent Recognition Main effect for sex of parent Self-disclosure Interaction of sex of parent and sex of adolescent Domination Interaction of age of adolescent, sex of parent and sex of adolescent Satisfaction Interaction of sex of parent and sex of adolescent
Number of topic areas involved
7 10 9 6 2 7
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Table III. Mean Ratings by Adolescents of Their Perceptions of Frequency of Discussion with Mothers and Fathers a
Males
Females
Topic
Fathers
Mothers
Fathers
Mothers
Interests Sex roles Relationships Sex attitudes Sex information Sex problems General problems
3.59 1.94 2.45 1.96 1.75 1.69 3.21
3.85 2.08 2.51 2.31 1.94 1.68 3.43
3.24 2.03 2.37 1.96 1.57 1.47 3.08
4.32 2.80 3.04 2.89 2.64 2.16 4.14
aRated from (1) rarely discussed, to (6) frequent long discussions.
Adolescent females believed they talked more frequently to their mothers than fathers about interests, sex roles, relationships (sexual attitudes, information, and problems), and general problems. Males talked with mothers more frequently than with fathers about their interests, sexual attitudes, information about sex, and general problems. They perceived, however, that they talked equally with parents about the other issues. In addition, adolescent females talked more with mothers than did males on each of the seven issues. On the other hand, compared to females, adolescent males believed they spoke more often to fathers about interests, sexual information and problems, and general problems.
Initiation Means for initiation indicated that conversations were equally likely to be initiated by parents as adolescents, with means generally ranging between 3 and 4. Analyses revealed a significant main effect for sex of parent (F = 3.13, d f = 14, 274, p < .001). Adolescents of both sexes judged that mothers initiated more discussions than fathers about social issues, sex roles, sex roles in the family, philosophy, family's philosophy, societal rules, relationships, sexual attitudes, sexual information, and sexual problems. Mean ratings for initiation are presented in Table IV.
Recognition Means for ratings of recognition indicated that adolescents generally believed their views were recognized, although not always accepted. Again, only a significant main effect for sex of parent emerged (F = 2.53, d f =
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Adolescents' Perceptions of Communication Table IV. Mean Ratings of Initiation and Recognition for Conversations with Mothers and Fathers Fathers
Mothers
Initiation ratingsa Social issues Sex roles Sex roles in the family Philosophy Societal rules Relationship Sexual attitudes Sexual information Sexual problems Family's philosophy
3.51 3.53 3.59 3.43 3.81 3.52 3.46 3.40 3.25 3.69
3.65 3.76 3.91 3.63 4.02 3.80 3.72 3.76 3.55 3.90
Recognition ratingsb Social issues Interests Sex roles Family sex roles Relationships Sexual information Sexual problems General problems Plans
3.82 4.22 3.70 3.60 3.60 3.34 3.33 4.11 4.11
4.03 4.37 3.86 3.78 3.81 3.63 3.59 4.31 4.34
aRated from (1) y o u always initiate the discussion, parents never interested to (6) parents always initiate, y o u are never interested. bRated from (1) your feelings and views are not recognized to (6) y o u r feelings and views are always recognized and accepted.
14,274, p < .01). Adolescents' perceptions indicated that mothers, more than fathers, were judged to recognize and accept adolescents' opinions about social issues, interests, sex roles, family sex roles, relationships, sexual information, sexual problems, general problems, and plans. Mean ratings for recognition are also presented in Table IV. Self-Disclosure Overall the means for self-disclosure indicate that adolescents do not disclose much to their parents. Means were generally between 2 and 3, with only disclosures about plans having a mean above 4. There was a significant sex of adolescent by sex of parent interaction (F = 2.39, df = 14,274, p < .01; see Table V) for 6 topics. Adolescent females believed they disclosed more to mothers than fathers on each topic; males disclosed equally to both parents. While males disclosed
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Females
Topic
Fathers
Mothers
Fathers
Mothers
Relationships Sexual attitudes Sexual information Sexual problems General problems Plans
3.21 2.89 2.75 2.77 3.81 3.86
3.20 2.90 2.70 2.66 3.85 3.92
3.19 2.75 2.49 2.39 3.56 4.18
3.60 3.24 3.05 3.05 3.96 4.45
aRated from (1) have not disclosed any o f y o u r views and feelings in this area to (6) have disclosed all aspects o f your views and feelings in this area.
more to fathers than did females about sexual information and problems, and about general problems and plans, adolescents females disclosed more to mothers than did males on all the issues except for general problems. Domination
Means ratings for domination were generally around 3, indicating that parents generally dominate the discussions, although only slightly. Results revealed a marginally significant three-way interaction: age of adolescent by sex of adolescent by sex of parent (F = 1.42, df = 56,1108; p < .05). Univariate effects were significant for only 2 of 14 topics: philosophy and sexual information. Age effects were inconsistent for both of these variables, and explain little about the nature of parent-adolescent communication. Satisfaction
Means for ratings of satisfaction were around 4, indicating that adolescents were slightly to somewhat satisfied with their interactions with their parents. Again, a sex of adolescent by sex of parent interaction was significant (F = 3.39, df = 14,274, p < .001). Table VI presents adolescents' mean ratings of levels of satisfaction in discussions with parents. As can be seen, while on all issues adolescent males reported similar, moderate levels of satisfaction for discussions with both parents, adolescent females were more satisfied with discussions with their mothers on each of the topics. Males were more satisfied than females about discussions with fathers about their interests, and sexual attitudes, information, andproblems. However, adolescent females were much more satisfied about conversations with mothers on all 7 topics than were males.
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Table VI. Mean Ratings of Levels of Satisfaction with Parent-Adoles-
cent Conversationsa Males Fathers Mothers 4.55 4.62 3.76 3.87 3.77 3.67 3.65 3.49 3.72 3.75 3.82 3.70 4.58 4.50
Females Topic Fathers Mothers Interests 4.28 4.76 Sex roles 3.75 4.34 Family sex roles 3.79 4.09 Sexual attitudes 3.49 4.01 Sexual information 3.52 4.09 Sexual problems 3.48 4.03 Plans 4.43 4.71 aRated from (1) you are very dissatisfied with the discussions in this area to (6) very satisfied.
DISCUSSION The study has shown few differences between younger and older adolescents in the ways they see their communication with their parents. When age effects did emerge on ratings of levels of dominance, differences by age of the adolescent interacted with sex of the adolescent and the parent. Furthermore, only two differences emerged out of 14 topics evaluated, and age effects were somewhat inconsistent across both topics. Ratings of dominance, nevertheless, indicated that adolescents believed parents still tended to dominate conversations, and provided little scope for the expression of their views. Contrary to expectations about more negotiation and control with older groups, there was little evidence of such gains in autonomy with age. It may be that gains with age are more apparent in areas other than adolescents' self-reports about communication. Changes in communication throughout adolescence do tend to be moderate (Grotevant and Cooper, 1986) and may be too subtle to emerge in studies like the present one. It may be in the use of communication skills in interaction studies that these developments toward greater recognition of the opinions of growing adolescents are more obvious. An alternative interpretation is that the younger adolescents exaggerate the amount of control they have in their conversations with parents. The findings of the study, however, do provide reasons why late adolescents of both sexes interact so much more with their mothers than their fathers (Noller and Bagi, 1985). Fathers were seen by younger adolescents as recognizing their views less than mothers and initiating fewer conversations with them across a range of areas. Such experiences could cause adolescents, as they get older, to minimize their interactions with their fathers. These find-
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ings fit with those of Younnis and Smollar (1985), who found that adolescents reported that their mothers were more understanding and accepting. Fathers were more judgmental and less willing to negotiate, and adolescents reported that they were more guarded and defensive in their communication with fathers. Barnes and Olson (1985) also found that adolescents reported that ~they were more open and disclosing in their communication with their mothers than their fathers. Three of the process variables--frequency, self-disclosure, and ratings of satisfaction- were affected by both sex of parent and sex of adolescent. Adolescents overall talked more to mothers than fathers. Adolescent females talked more to mothers than fathers, although there were some areas where males believed they talked more with fathers than mothers, particularly about sexual information and problems, general problems, and interests. Thus, at these younger ages adolescent males are communicating with their fathers, and not just about politics, as was found by Noller and Bagi. Since the adolescents in the present study have not reached voting age, politics may be of less interest to them. Ratings of self-disclosure showed that adolescents do not "tell all" to their parents, as overall levels of disclosure were quite low, with disclosure being rare in most areas. There were 6 topics where disclosure was affected by sex of parent and sex of adolescent, including sexual attitudes, information, and problems, relationships, plans, and general problems. The highest levels of disclosure for all these topics were for females to mothers. Males generally did not discriminate between mothers and fathers to the same extent as females, but they disclosed more to their fathers than did females about sexual information and problems, as well as general problems. The highest levels of disclosure for both males and females were about plans. Presumably, they needed to share these with their parents since they would need their parents' support in bringing these plans to fruition. Except for the areas of interests and plans, males were generally less satisfied with their communication with their parents than were females. On the other hand, males were equally satisfied with their communication with both parents, while females were considerably more satisfied with their communication with mothers than fathers. These findings are quite different from those of Noller and Bagi, who found no differences in levels of satisfaction between male and female adolescents, or for either parent. By the time they get to college, these adolescents seem to be quite satisfied with a pattern of communication involving mothers as the main conversants, and more communication with daughters than sons. These patterns would seem to set the scene for the problems males later experience in communicating with their wives (Noller and Fitzpatrick, 1988). Finally, while the present study contributes to our understanding of how adolescents of different ages and sexes perceive their communication
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with p a r e n t s , we have n o t c o n s i d e r e d several o t h e r m a j o r m o d e r a t o r s . I m p o r t a n t a m o n g these is the w o r l d o f peer a d o l e s c e n t c o m m u n i c a t i o n , a n d the effects o f p e r c e p t i o n s o f this c o m m u n i c a t i v e r e l a t i o n s h i p u p o n a d o l e s cents' e x p e c t a t i o n s a b o u t p a r e n t - a d o l e s c e n t c o m m u n i c a t i o n . It. is possible, for e x a m p l e , t h a t m a l e s ' s a t i s f a c t i o n with f a m i l y r e l a t i o n s h i p s increases in late adolescence b e c a u s e peer r e l a t i o n s h i p s have filled the gap. A l s o , while the d i a l o g u e on this t o p i c continues to a d d to o u r t h e o r e t i c a l u n d e r s t a n d i n g o f adolescence, t h e r e are several i m p o r t a n t m e t h o d o l o g i c a l issues t h a t need to be c o n s i d e r e d in o u r a t t e m p t s to describe f a m i l y f u n c t i o n i n g . H i g h o n this list o f m e t h o d o l o g i c a l concerns is t h e u n d e r s t a n d i n g g a i n e d a b o u t f a m i ly c o m m u n i c a t i o n b y responses f r o m m u l t i p l e f a m i l y m e m b e r s (e.g., Barnes a n d O l s o n , 1985; N o l l e r a n d C a l l a n , 1988) a n d the a d d e d c o m p l e x i t y these m u l t i p l e perspectives p r o v i d e to a n u n d e r s t a n d i n g o f this p h e n o m e n o n .
ACKNOWLEDGMENT W e wish to a c k n o w l e d g e the research s u p p o r t o f Ms. A s t r i d S i r o w a t k a , U n i v e r s i t y o f Q u e e n s l a n d , a n d the c o o p e r a t i o n o f the adolescents w h o p a r t i c i p a t e d in this s t u d y a n d t h e students w h o r e c r u i t e d t h e m .
REFERENCES
Barnes, H. L., and Olson, D. H. (1985). Parent-adolescent communication and the circumplex model. Child Develop. 56: 438-447. Bengtson, V. L., and Starr, J. M. (1975). Contrast and consensus: A generational analysis of youth in the 1970s. In Havighurst, R. J., and Dreyer, P. H. (eds.), Youth. The SeventyFourth Yearbook of the National Society for the Study of Education. University of Chicago Press, Chicago. Callan, V. J., and Noller, P. (1986). Perceptions of communicative relationships in families with adolescents. J. Marriage Family 48: 813-820. Caplow, T., Bahr, H. M., Chadwick, B. A., Hill, R., and Williamson, M. H. (1982). Middletown Families. University of Minnesota Press, Minneapolis. Chartier, J., and Chartier, M. (1975). Perceived parental communication and self-esteem: An exploratory study. West. Speech 39: 26-31. Cooper, C. R., Grotevant, H. D., Moore, M. S., and Condon, S. M. (1982, August). Family support and conflict: Both foster adolescent identity and role taking. Paper presented at the meeting of the American Psychological Association, August, Washington, DC. Csikszentmihalyi, M., and Larson, R. (1984). Being Adolescent. Basic Books, New York. Grotevant, H. D., and Cooper, C. R. (1986). Individuation in family relationships: A perspec-tive on individual differences in the development of identity and role-taking skill in adolescence. Human Development 29: 82-100. Hartnp, W. W. (1979). The social worlds of childhood. Am. Psychol. 34: 944-950. Hunter, F. T. (1985). Individual adolescents' perceptions of interactions with friends and parents. J. Early Adoles. 5: 295-305. Hunter, F. T., and Youniss, J. (1982). Changes in functions of three relations during adolescence. Develop. Psychol. 18: 806-811.
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Huston, T. L., and Robins, E. (1982). Conceptual and methodological issues in studying close relationships. J. Marriage Family 44: 901-925. Jacob, T. (1974). Patterns of family conflict and dominance as a function of child age and social class. Develop. Psychol. 10: 1-12. Lynd, R. S., and Lynd, H. M. (1929). Middletown. Harcourt, Brace & Co., New York. Montemayor, R. (1982). The relationship between parent-adolescent conflict and the amount of time adolescents spend alone and with parents and peers. Child Develop. 53: 1512-1519. Montemayor, R. (1983). Parents and adolescents in conflict: All families some of the time and some families most of the time. J. Early Adoles. 3: 83-103. Montemayor, R., and Hanson, E. (1985). A naturalistic view of conflict between adolescents and their parents and siblings. J. Early Adoles. 3: 83-103. Noller, P., and Bagi, S. (1985). Parent-adolescent communication. J. Adoles. 8: 125-144. Noller, P., and Callan, V. J. (1986). Adolescent and parent perceptions of family cohesion and adaptability. J. Adoles. 9: 97-106. Noller, P., and Callan, V. J. (1988). Understanding parent-adolescent interactions: The perceptions of family members and outsiders. Develop. Psychol. 24: 707-714. Noller, P., and Fitzpatrick, M . A . (1988). Perspectives on Marital Interaction. Multilingual Matters, Clevedon and Philadelphia. Patterson, G. R. (1982). Coercive Family Process. Castalia Publishing Co., Eugene, OR. Smith, K., and Forehand, R. (1986). Parent-adolescent conflict: Comparison and prediction of the perceptions of mothers, fathers and daughters. J. Early Adoles. 6: 353-367. Steinberg, L. D., and Hill, J. P. (1978). Patterns of family interaction as a function of age, the onset of puberty, and formal thinking. Develop. Psychol. 14: 683-684. Thornburg, H. D. (1981). The amount of sex information learning obtained during early adolescence. J. Early Adoles. 1: 171-183. Youniss, J., and Smollar, J. (1985). Adolescent Relations with Mothers, Fathers, and Friends. University of Chicago Press, Chicago.
Adolescents' Perceptions of the Nature of Their Communication with Parents Patricia N o l l e r ~ and Victor J. Callan 2
ReceivedMay 18, 1989; acceptedNovember 20, 1989 This study examines the effects o f the age and sex o f adolescent and the sex o f parent upon adolescents" perceptions o f the nature o f their communication with each parent. Two hundred and ninety-six adolescents aged 13-17 years completed a communication schedule, rating 14 content areas along six process dimensions:frequency o f conversation, initiator, levels o f recognition o f adolescents" opinion, self-disclosure, domination, and levels o f satisfaction. Multivariate analyses o f variance were conducted separately for each process dimension. Frequency ratings revealed that adolescent females of all ages reported talking more often with mothers than did adolescent males. Adolescent males, however, believed they talked more often than did females with fathers about interests, sexual issues, and general problems. Mothers were seen to initiate more conversations than fathers on a wide range o f topics. Mothers were also perceived as more likely to recognize and accept the adolescents" opinions. Adolescent females believed they disclosed more to mothers than fathers, but males believed they disclosed equally to both parents. Males disclosed more to fathers than did females about their sexual or other problems, while females disclosed more often overall to their mothers than did males. Adolescent males were equally satisfied with their discussions with both parents, but females were more satisfied about conversations with mothers rather than fathers. In sum, the results suggest that mothers" more
~Reader in Psychology, University of Queensland, Ph.D. in Social Psychology, University of Queensland. Her current interests are in the areas of marital and family communication, adolescence, and personal relationships. To whom reprint requests should be addressed at Department of Psychology, University of Queensland, St. Lucia, 4067, Queensland, Australia. 2Reader in Psychology, University of Queensland, Ph.D. in Social Psychology, Australian National University, with research interests in adolescence, marital communication, and childless couples. 349 0047-2891/90/0800-0349506.00/0
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frequent initiation o f discussions with their younger adolescents and their greater recognition of their opinions lead to older adolescems interacting more with mothers than fathers.
INTRODUCTION If we are to tap the complexity and variety of parent-adolescent communications, it seems critical to consider not only the topic and the quality of the communication, but also differences in communication according to the sex of the parents, and sex and age of the adolescents. While a large number of studies have detailed specific features of parent-adolescent communication, only recently have researchers attempted to study the variety of factors that may simultaneously shape the nature of the communication. Such studies are important as several theories of adolescence propose that the stresses related to this stage are due to the adolescents' lack of interpersonal skills to cope with changes necessary to move toward greater independence and autonomy (see Hartup, 1979; Montemayor, 1983). Supportive communication in the family is seen as one factor that encourages the development of social and coping skills, and more positive identities among adolescents (Chartier and Chartier, 1975; Cooper et al., 1982). In particular, a more relational view of adolescence (see Grotevant and Cooper, 1986) describes a family environment in which changes in communication are moderate and through negotiation, with the result that parents come to show greater respect for the opinions of growing adolescents, and allow them more control. Older adolescents seem to change their relationships with parents, developing new forms of interaction involving reduced levels of conflict (Jacob, 1974; Steinberg and Hill, 1978). They renegotiate their status in the parent-child relationship (Hunter, 1985; Hunter and Youniss, 1982), and their gains in status and control may emerge in their perceptions about the quality of their communication with parents. Research into the topics of parent-adolescent conversations reveals that the majority of arguments between parents and adolescents are about dayto-day living and family matters: personal hygiene, disobedience, school work, social activities and friendships, chores around the house, and arguments with siblings (Caplow et al., 1982; Csikszentmihalyi and Larson, 1984; Montemayor, 1982, 1983). In fact, Montemayor (1983) draws together data to show that the arguments between parents and adolescents in the 1970s and 1980s are similar in content to those reported by Lynd and Lynd (1929). Bengtson and Starr (1975) showed that parents and adolescents tend not to argue about some of the areas of great difference (sex, drugs, religion, politics) and others (Noller and Bagi, 1985; Thornburg, 1981) have found that families avoid potentially explosive issues such as sexuality.
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Some recent studies have adopted a more complex view of parent-adolescent communication, investigating sex and age effects, and tapping various areas of communication and process variables. Youniss and Smollar (1985) studied parent-adolescent communication for adolescents aged 15-18 years, across six different areas (school-career, societal views, intrafamily issues, friendship, sex and marriage, doubts and fears) and four different process variables (openness-mutuality, mutual settlement and negotiation of disagreements, guardedness in communication, and imposition of unilateral settlements). While results considered differences in communication patterns by sex o f parent, there was no attempt to relate process variables to areas of communication. Youniss and Smollar found that adolescents had quite different views of their communication with each parent. Adolescents, particularly daughters, reported generally stronger relationships with mothers than fathers. Mothers were seen as more open, understanding, and accepting; interested in the day-to-day problems o f their teenagers; and able to negotiate agreements. Fathers, on the other hand, were seen as more judgmental; less willing to be involved in discussions of feelings, self-doubts, and problems of adjustment; and more likely to impose their authority on the adolescents. Adolescents claimed that they were more likely to limit their communication with their fathers, and to be more defensive and guarded toward them. Findings with regard to sex differences in parent-adolescent interaction are mixed, and seem to depend upon whether the variable under consideration is conflict or communication. While adolescents seem to report more conflict with mothers than fathers (Montemayor and Hanson, 1985; Smith and Forehand, 1986), several researchers find that adolescents, especially females, report more frequent and more positive communication with mothers than fathers (Barnes and Olson, 1985; Youniss and SmoUar, 1985), especially more self-disclosure and openness. Perhaps adolescents have less conflict with fathers than mothers because most of their meaningful communication is with their mothers. In another attempt to consider content areas and process variables, Noller and Bagi (1985) examined sex differences in parent-adolescent communication across 14 different areas (these were selected to cover both intraand extrafamily issues, and both general societal issues and specific issues) and six process dimensions (frequency, initiation, self-disclosure, the extent the parent recognizes the adolescent's views, the parent's domination, and the adolescent's satisfaction with the communication). In contrast to Youniss and Smollar's (1985) study, more areas of communication were investigated, and process variables were related to communication areas to determine differences across areas. The 18- and 19-year-olds surveyed reported more communication with mothers than fathers across a broad range of topics, except for politics, where they talked more with fathers. In terms of process
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variables, daughters talked more to their mothers than did sons, and disclosed more to both parents than did sons. No differences, however, emerged in sons' and daughters' levels of initiation of conversations, dominance, and levels of satisfaction, or in the recognition their opinions received from parents. The present study continues on from the earlier studies of Youniss and Smollar (1985) and Noller and Bagi (1985). Our focus was upon content and process variables in parent-adolescent communication, and differences in perceptions of male and female adolescents aged 13-17 years. It was expected that adolescents would perceive mothers as the parent who was the focus of their conversations more than fathers. Adolescent females especially were expected to report higher levels of self-disclosure and more frequent discussion in conversations with their mothers, and to be more satisfied with the level of communication. Mothers were expected to be seen more often as the initiators of conversations. We were also interested in determining whether younger adolescents' perceptions of their communication with parents could help explain sex differences observed in late adolescence (e.g., Noller and Bagi, 1985). For example, if younger adolescents believe fathers dominate them more and give them less recognition, such a finding might help explain the reason that older adolescents communicate less with their fathers. Changes in levels of recognition, dominance, and disclosure were expected over the age span of 13-17 years. Levels of self-disclosure were predicted to be greater for older adolescents, especially by girls to their mothers. As evidence of more mutual interaction (see Grotevant and Cooper, 1986), older adolescents were expected to report more self-disclosure, more initiation, and less dominance. Also because of these changes, older adolescents of both sexes were expected to be more satisfied with the quality of their communication with both parents. While it is now common to study parent-offspring interactions using observational methods (e.g., Callan and Noller, 1986; Noller and Callan, 1986, 1988; Cooper et al., 1982; Patterson, 1982) rather than self-reports, observational studies cannot answer questions about typical behavior. As Montemayor and Hanson (1985) note, data gathered using structured observational situations are more useful for showing what parents and adolescents can do, than what they typically do. Both methodologies have problems related to validity and reliability, and the suitability of one methodology over another depends on the research question being asked. If the interest is in interpersonal events (or actual behavior) and the outsider's perceptions of these, then videotapes coded by trained observers are most useful. If the interest is in subjective events (Huston and Robins, 1982) or the perceptions of the individual family members, then some form of questionnaire or interview is very appropriate. The presumption is that perceptions should be con-
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gruent with actual interactions, and importantly, should allow us to gain insights into the meaning adolescents attach to interactions with their parents (Youniss and Smollar, 1985). For the question at issue here, adolescents' perceptions of their typical communication with their parents, self-report is the most useful method.
METHOD Sample
Subjects were 296 (160 males, 136 females) adolescents aged 13-17 years: 54 of them were 13-year-olds, 65 were 14-year-olds, 43 were 15-year-olds, 63 were 16-year-olds, and 71 were 17-year-olds. There were approximately equal numbers of numbers of males and females in each age group. Adolescents were enlisted by students in college classes, who located one male and one female aged between 13 and 17. Only one adolescent from each twoparent family was surveyed. The sample was urban and had a bias toward middle-class, tertiary educated parents (26~ of sample). Parents with quite low educational levels were also well represented. Parent-Adolescent Communication Inventory
In their homes, all adolescents completed the Parent-Adolescent Communication Inventory (Noller and Bagi, 1985), once for their communication with mothers alone and once for communication with fathers alone. The inventory is designed to examine both process and content aspects of parent-adolescent communication. The six process dimensions, based on past research, include ratings along 6-point scales of frequency (1, rarely discuss this, 6, frequent long discussions), initiation (1, you always initiate the discussion, parents are never interested, 6, parents always initiate, you are never interested), recognition (1, your feelings and views are not recognized, 6, your feelings and views are always recognized and accepted), self-disclosure (1, you have not disclosed any of your views and feelings in this area, 6, have disclosed all aspects of your views and feelings in this area), domination (1, parents totally dominate the discussion, no scope for the expression of your views, 6, you totally dominate the discussion, parents have no scope for the expression of their views), and satisfaction (1, you are very dissatisfied with the discussion in the area, 6, very satisfied with discussions in this area). These six ratings were made to each of 14 content areas that represent two basic dimensions-reference (external social vs. intrafamily) and specificity (general
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principles vs. specific issues; see Noller and Bagi, 1985). The 14 content areas are social issues, interests, sex roles, sex roles in family, a general philosophy, family's philosophy, rules of society, personal relationships, sexual attitudes, politics, sexual information, problems of sexuality, general problems, and future plans. Within the schedule, respondents were given detailed descriptions of the issues to be considered within each content area and these are presented in Table I.
Table I
1. Current social issues. This area includes discussion of issues such as, drug and alcohol addiction, crime and abortion.
2. Your interests. This area would include any discussion of your tastes in music, fashion, sport or social interests.
3. Sex roles. This area covers any discussion o f the sex roles that exist in our society. This
4. 5. 6. 7.
8. 9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
could include issues such as the function of sex roles, and whether they are beneficial or detrimental to society. This area also includes the discussion o f specific issues, such as women in the work force, and the role of women and m e n in both the family and in the society. The relevance o f sex roles f o r your family. This area covers any discussion of the role of the father and mother in your family, as well as the roles of husband and wife. Generalphilosophy. This area includes discussion of issues such as the nature of h u m a n existence, the implications and validity of various religious perspectives. This section would also cover such questions on whether or not God exists or whether there is life after death. Implications o f your family's philosophy on the family itself. This area includes any discussion of your family's attitudes towards religion, i.e., whether or not religion should be a part of the family's activities. Rules and conventions o f society. This area would cover discussions o f topics such as the function and importance in having social rules and conventions, e.g., laws and more subtle conventions of behavior such as etiquette. This area would also include the discussion of the importance of such rules and conventions within your family. Relations. This area includes discussion of such issues as the function and importance of the family unit to society, including attitudes toward the family unit, marriage, and divorce. Attitudes toward sexuality. This area covers discussion of issues such as the function and importance of sex in a relationship, and whether sex should be confined to the marital relationship, i.e., the issue of premarital sexual relationships. This area also applies to the effect of your parents' attitudes in this area on your lifestyle, e.g., discussion of behaviors such as dating. Politics. This area of discussion would cover such areas as various political ideologies, their implications and function, as well as discussion of the voting and political preferences of the members of your family. Information concerning sexuality. This area covers occasions when the parent is giving specific information concerning sexual behaviors or sexual development. Information could be given on topics such as male and female physiological development, sexual behaviors, the process of reproduction, contraception, masturbation, and sexually transmitted diseases. Your queries and problems in the area o f sexuality. This area covers any discussion of your questions concerning the area of sexual behavior and development. It also includes the discussion of your problems in understanding any of the information, or problems that you might have come across in situations that you have experienced. Generalproblems in your life. This area includes the discussion of any problems that you might be experiencing excluding the area of sexuality, e.g., problems at home, with friends, or at school. Your plans f o r the future. This area includes any general discussion of your plans for the future, e.g., relationships, work or academic.
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RESULTS Overview
Separate 2 • 2 • 5 multivariate analyses o f variance ( M A N O V A s ) were c o n d u c t e d f o r each o f the six d i m e n s i o n s m e a s u r e d o n the c o m m u n i c a t i o n s c h e d u l e - f r e q u e n c y , initiation, recognition, self-disclosure, d o m i n a t i o n , a n d s a t i s f a c t i o n . Between-subjects factors were the sex a n d age o f t h e a d o l e s c e n t (13-, 14-, 15-, 16-, a n d 17-year-old). T h e w i t h i n - s u b j e c t m e a s u r e was the sex o f the p a r e n t a b o u t w h o m the m e a s u r e was c o m p l e t e d . D e p e n d e n t variables were the 14 areas o f c o m m u n i c a t i o n (e.g., social issues, interests) r a t e d o n each d i m e n s i o n . W h e r e i n t e r a c t i o n s o c c u r r e d , simple effects a n d p o s t hoc analyses ( N e w m a n - K e u l s ) were p e r f o r m e d . A s u m m a r y o f M A N O V A s is p r e s e n t e d in T a b l e II.
Frequency
The m e a n s for frequency showed t h a t adolescents rarely r e p o r t e d m o r e t h a n o c c a s i o n a l discussion o n a n y t o p i c . F o r several topics, the m e a n s were p a r t i c u l a r l y low, rarely exceeding 2. Interests a n d general p r o b l e m s were discussed m o r e frequently. T h e M A N O V A revealed a significant m a i n effect for sex o f p a r e n t , which was s u b s u m e d in a sex o f p a r e n t b y sex o f a d o l e s cent i n t e r a c t i o n ( F = 4.43, df = 14,274, p < .001). U n i v a r i a t e effects were significant for 7 o f the 14 variables (see T a b l e III).
Table !1. Summary of MANOVAs for Each Process Variable
Effect Frequency Main effect for sex of parent Interaction of sex of parent and sex of adolescent Initiation Main effect for sex of parent Recognition Main effect for sex of parent Self-disclosure Interaction of sex of parent and sex of adolescent Domination Interaction of age of adolescent, sex of parent and sex of adolescent Satisfaction Interaction of sex of parent and sex of adolescent
Number of topic areas involved
7 10 9 6 2 7
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Table III. Mean Ratings by Adolescents of Their Perceptions of Frequency of Discussion with Mothers and Fathers a
Males
Females
Topic
Fathers
Mothers
Fathers
Mothers
Interests Sex roles Relationships Sex attitudes Sex information Sex problems General problems
3.59 1.94 2.45 1.96 1.75 1.69 3.21
3.85 2.08 2.51 2.31 1.94 1.68 3.43
3.24 2.03 2.37 1.96 1.57 1.47 3.08
4.32 2.80 3.04 2.89 2.64 2.16 4.14
aRated from (1) rarely discussed, to (6) frequent long discussions.
Adolescent females believed they talked more frequently to their mothers than fathers about interests, sex roles, relationships (sexual attitudes, information, and problems), and general problems. Males talked with mothers more frequently than with fathers about their interests, sexual attitudes, information about sex, and general problems. They perceived, however, that they talked equally with parents about the other issues. In addition, adolescent females talked more with mothers than did males on each of the seven issues. On the other hand, compared to females, adolescent males believed they spoke more often to fathers about interests, sexual information and problems, and general problems.
Initiation Means for initiation indicated that conversations were equally likely to be initiated by parents as adolescents, with means generally ranging between 3 and 4. Analyses revealed a significant main effect for sex of parent (F = 3.13, d f = 14, 274, p < .001). Adolescents of both sexes judged that mothers initiated more discussions than fathers about social issues, sex roles, sex roles in the family, philosophy, family's philosophy, societal rules, relationships, sexual attitudes, sexual information, and sexual problems. Mean ratings for initiation are presented in Table IV.
Recognition Means for ratings of recognition indicated that adolescents generally believed their views were recognized, although not always accepted. Again, only a significant main effect for sex of parent emerged (F = 2.53, d f =
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Adolescents' Perceptions of Communication Table IV. Mean Ratings of Initiation and Recognition for Conversations with Mothers and Fathers Fathers
Mothers
Initiation ratingsa Social issues Sex roles Sex roles in the family Philosophy Societal rules Relationship Sexual attitudes Sexual information Sexual problems Family's philosophy
3.51 3.53 3.59 3.43 3.81 3.52 3.46 3.40 3.25 3.69
3.65 3.76 3.91 3.63 4.02 3.80 3.72 3.76 3.55 3.90
Recognition ratingsb Social issues Interests Sex roles Family sex roles Relationships Sexual information Sexual problems General problems Plans
3.82 4.22 3.70 3.60 3.60 3.34 3.33 4.11 4.11
4.03 4.37 3.86 3.78 3.81 3.63 3.59 4.31 4.34
aRated from (1) y o u always initiate the discussion, parents never interested to (6) parents always initiate, y o u are never interested. bRated from (1) your feelings and views are not recognized to (6) y o u r feelings and views are always recognized and accepted.
14,274, p < .01). Adolescents' perceptions indicated that mothers, more than fathers, were judged to recognize and accept adolescents' opinions about social issues, interests, sex roles, family sex roles, relationships, sexual information, sexual problems, general problems, and plans. Mean ratings for recognition are also presented in Table IV. Self-Disclosure Overall the means for self-disclosure indicate that adolescents do not disclose much to their parents. Means were generally between 2 and 3, with only disclosures about plans having a mean above 4. There was a significant sex of adolescent by sex of parent interaction (F = 2.39, df = 14,274, p < .01; see Table V) for 6 topics. Adolescent females believed they disclosed more to mothers than fathers on each topic; males disclosed equally to both parents. While males disclosed
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Females
Topic
Fathers
Mothers
Fathers
Mothers
Relationships Sexual attitudes Sexual information Sexual problems General problems Plans
3.21 2.89 2.75 2.77 3.81 3.86
3.20 2.90 2.70 2.66 3.85 3.92
3.19 2.75 2.49 2.39 3.56 4.18
3.60 3.24 3.05 3.05 3.96 4.45
aRated from (1) have not disclosed any o f y o u r views and feelings in this area to (6) have disclosed all aspects o f your views and feelings in this area.
more to fathers than did females about sexual information and problems, and about general problems and plans, adolescents females disclosed more to mothers than did males on all the issues except for general problems. Domination
Means ratings for domination were generally around 3, indicating that parents generally dominate the discussions, although only slightly. Results revealed a marginally significant three-way interaction: age of adolescent by sex of adolescent by sex of parent (F = 1.42, df = 56,1108; p < .05). Univariate effects were significant for only 2 of 14 topics: philosophy and sexual information. Age effects were inconsistent for both of these variables, and explain little about the nature of parent-adolescent communication. Satisfaction
Means for ratings of satisfaction were around 4, indicating that adolescents were slightly to somewhat satisfied with their interactions with their parents. Again, a sex of adolescent by sex of parent interaction was significant (F = 3.39, df = 14,274, p < .001). Table VI presents adolescents' mean ratings of levels of satisfaction in discussions with parents. As can be seen, while on all issues adolescent males reported similar, moderate levels of satisfaction for discussions with both parents, adolescent females were more satisfied with discussions with their mothers on each of the topics. Males were more satisfied than females about discussions with fathers about their interests, and sexual attitudes, information, andproblems. However, adolescent females were much more satisfied about conversations with mothers on all 7 topics than were males.
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Table VI. Mean Ratings of Levels of Satisfaction with Parent-Adoles-
cent Conversationsa Males Fathers Mothers 4.55 4.62 3.76 3.87 3.77 3.67 3.65 3.49 3.72 3.75 3.82 3.70 4.58 4.50
Females Topic Fathers Mothers Interests 4.28 4.76 Sex roles 3.75 4.34 Family sex roles 3.79 4.09 Sexual attitudes 3.49 4.01 Sexual information 3.52 4.09 Sexual problems 3.48 4.03 Plans 4.43 4.71 aRated from (1) you are very dissatisfied with the discussions in this area to (6) very satisfied.
DISCUSSION The study has shown few differences between younger and older adolescents in the ways they see their communication with their parents. When age effects did emerge on ratings of levels of dominance, differences by age of the adolescent interacted with sex of the adolescent and the parent. Furthermore, only two differences emerged out of 14 topics evaluated, and age effects were somewhat inconsistent across both topics. Ratings of dominance, nevertheless, indicated that adolescents believed parents still tended to dominate conversations, and provided little scope for the expression of their views. Contrary to expectations about more negotiation and control with older groups, there was little evidence of such gains in autonomy with age. It may be that gains with age are more apparent in areas other than adolescents' self-reports about communication. Changes in communication throughout adolescence do tend to be moderate (Grotevant and Cooper, 1986) and may be too subtle to emerge in studies like the present one. It may be in the use of communication skills in interaction studies that these developments toward greater recognition of the opinions of growing adolescents are more obvious. An alternative interpretation is that the younger adolescents exaggerate the amount of control they have in their conversations with parents. The findings of the study, however, do provide reasons why late adolescents of both sexes interact so much more with their mothers than their fathers (Noller and Bagi, 1985). Fathers were seen by younger adolescents as recognizing their views less than mothers and initiating fewer conversations with them across a range of areas. Such experiences could cause adolescents, as they get older, to minimize their interactions with their fathers. These find-
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ings fit with those of Younnis and Smollar (1985), who found that adolescents reported that their mothers were more understanding and accepting. Fathers were more judgmental and less willing to negotiate, and adolescents reported that they were more guarded and defensive in their communication with fathers. Barnes and Olson (1985) also found that adolescents reported that ~they were more open and disclosing in their communication with their mothers than their fathers. Three of the process variables--frequency, self-disclosure, and ratings of satisfaction- were affected by both sex of parent and sex of adolescent. Adolescents overall talked more to mothers than fathers. Adolescent females talked more to mothers than fathers, although there were some areas where males believed they talked more with fathers than mothers, particularly about sexual information and problems, general problems, and interests. Thus, at these younger ages adolescent males are communicating with their fathers, and not just about politics, as was found by Noller and Bagi. Since the adolescents in the present study have not reached voting age, politics may be of less interest to them. Ratings of self-disclosure showed that adolescents do not "tell all" to their parents, as overall levels of disclosure were quite low, with disclosure being rare in most areas. There were 6 topics where disclosure was affected by sex of parent and sex of adolescent, including sexual attitudes, information, and problems, relationships, plans, and general problems. The highest levels of disclosure for all these topics were for females to mothers. Males generally did not discriminate between mothers and fathers to the same extent as females, but they disclosed more to their fathers than did females about sexual information and problems, as well as general problems. The highest levels of disclosure for both males and females were about plans. Presumably, they needed to share these with their parents since they would need their parents' support in bringing these plans to fruition. Except for the areas of interests and plans, males were generally less satisfied with their communication with their parents than were females. On the other hand, males were equally satisfied with their communication with both parents, while females were considerably more satisfied with their communication with mothers than fathers. These findings are quite different from those of Noller and Bagi, who found no differences in levels of satisfaction between male and female adolescents, or for either parent. By the time they get to college, these adolescents seem to be quite satisfied with a pattern of communication involving mothers as the main conversants, and more communication with daughters than sons. These patterns would seem to set the scene for the problems males later experience in communicating with their wives (Noller and Fitzpatrick, 1988). Finally, while the present study contributes to our understanding of how adolescents of different ages and sexes perceive their communication
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with p a r e n t s , we have n o t c o n s i d e r e d several o t h e r m a j o r m o d e r a t o r s . I m p o r t a n t a m o n g these is the w o r l d o f peer a d o l e s c e n t c o m m u n i c a t i o n , a n d the effects o f p e r c e p t i o n s o f this c o m m u n i c a t i v e r e l a t i o n s h i p u p o n a d o l e s cents' e x p e c t a t i o n s a b o u t p a r e n t - a d o l e s c e n t c o m m u n i c a t i o n . It. is possible, for e x a m p l e , t h a t m a l e s ' s a t i s f a c t i o n with f a m i l y r e l a t i o n s h i p s increases in late adolescence b e c a u s e peer r e l a t i o n s h i p s have filled the gap. A l s o , while the d i a l o g u e on this t o p i c continues to a d d to o u r t h e o r e t i c a l u n d e r s t a n d i n g o f adolescence, t h e r e are several i m p o r t a n t m e t h o d o l o g i c a l issues t h a t need to be c o n s i d e r e d in o u r a t t e m p t s to describe f a m i l y f u n c t i o n i n g . H i g h o n this list o f m e t h o d o l o g i c a l concerns is t h e u n d e r s t a n d i n g g a i n e d a b o u t f a m i ly c o m m u n i c a t i o n b y responses f r o m m u l t i p l e f a m i l y m e m b e r s (e.g., Barnes a n d O l s o n , 1985; N o l l e r a n d C a l l a n , 1988) a n d the a d d e d c o m p l e x i t y these m u l t i p l e perspectives p r o v i d e to a n u n d e r s t a n d i n g o f this p h e n o m e n o n .
ACKNOWLEDGMENT W e wish to a c k n o w l e d g e the research s u p p o r t o f Ms. A s t r i d S i r o w a t k a , U n i v e r s i t y o f Q u e e n s l a n d , a n d the c o o p e r a t i o n o f the adolescents w h o p a r t i c i p a t e d in this s t u d y a n d t h e students w h o r e c r u i t e d t h e m .
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