Adolescents’ Information Management: Comparing Ideas About Why Adolescents Disclose to or Keep Secrets from Their Parents

Abstract

Recognizing that adolescents providing or withholding information about their activities is a strong predictor of parental knowledge, this article compares several ideas about what prompts adolescents to disclose information or keep secrets from their parents. Using a sample of 874 Northern European adolescents (aged 12-16 years; 49.8 % were girls), modified cross-lagged models examined parental monitoring (solicitation and monitoring rules), adolescent delinquency, and perceived parental support as predictors and consequences of adolescents disclosing to parents or keeping secrets, with adolescents' acceptance of parental authority as a moderator. Results suggest that, when adolescents view their parents as supportive, they subsequently disclose more and keep fewer secrets. Engaging in delinquent behavior was related reciprocally to keeping secrets. By comparison, the results generally did not support the idea that adolescents who are monitored provide information to parents, even when they accept parental authority. These results suggest that relationship dynamics and adolescents' delinquent behaviors play an important role in adolescents' information management.

Adolescent Disclosure to Parents and Daily Management of Type 1 Diabetes

“…As late adolescence is a time when adolescents are less frequently in contact with parents, future research should examine how adolescents and their parents can engage to facilitate disclosure even when they no longer have daily contact. This will likely involve maintaining a warm and accepting relationship so that when emerging adults disclose they can expect support rather than conflict to occur (Tilton-Weaver, 2014).…”

“…Adolescent disclosure to parents typically occurs in the context of high-quality, warm, and accepting parent-child relationships (Hare, Marston, & Allen, 2010;Solis, Smetana, & Comer, 2015;Tilton-Weaver, 2014) and is associated with better health, lower delinquency, and fewer depressive symptoms (Kerr, Stattin, & Burk, 2010). For adolescents with type 1 diabetes, disclosure to parents has been associated with better adherence to the diabetes regimen (Osborn et al, 2013).…”

The Effects of Parental Monitoring on Adolescent and Emerging Adult Contribution: A Longitudinal Examination

“…Life period in which parental monitoring takes place is also very important (Tilton-Weaver, 2014). It seems particularly important to study the effects of parental monitoring in emerging adulthood because the very nature of the time period calls for greater amounts, not less, of autonomy granting by parents (Arnett, 2000).…”

Adolescent Disclosure of Information About Peers: The Mediating Role of Perceptions of Parents’ Right to Know

“…Several studies have pointed to some aspect of parenting or the quality of parent-child relationships as a determinant of disclosure (Hunter et al 2011;Keijsers et al 2009;Tilton-Weaver 2014). Our study is unusual in considering multiple qualities of parent-child bonds separately for mothers and fathers.…”