The Relation of Parent-Adolescent Conflict to Adolescent Psychological Well-Being, School Adjustment, and Problem Behavior

The association between parent-adolescent conflict and adolescent adjustment was examined in 429 Chinese adolescents using children's and parents' reports of parent-adolescent conflict. Results generally showed that parent-adolescent conflict based on ratings obtained from different sources were significantly related to measures of psychological well-being (general psychiatric morbidity, life satisfaction, purpose in life, hopelessness, and self-esteem), school adjustment (perceived academic performance and school conduct) and problem behavior (smoking and psychotropic drug abuse). The findings suggest that there is an intimate link between parent-adolescent conflict and the psychosocial adjustment, particularly the positive mental health, of Chinese adolescents.