Conflict Resolution in Mexican American Adolescents’ Friendships: Links with Culture, Gender and Friendship Quality

Abstract

This study was designed to describe the conflict resolution practices used in Mexican American adolescents' friendships, to explore the role of cultural orientations and values and gender-typed personality qualities in conflict resolution use, and to assess the connections between conflict resolution and friendship quality. Participants were 246 Mexican American adolescents (M = 12.77 years of age) and their older siblings (M = 15.70 years of age). Results indicated that adolescents used solution-oriented strategies most frequently, followed by nonconfrontation and control strategies. Girls were more likely than boys to use solution-oriented strategies and less likely to use control strategies. Familistic values and gender-typed personality qualities were associated with solution-oriented conflict resolution strategies. Finally, conflict resolution strategies were related to overall friendship quality: solution-oriented strategies were positively linked to intimacy and negatively associated with friendship negativity, whereas nonconfrontation and control strategies were associated with greater relationship negativity.

Guided cognitive reframing of adolescent-father conflict: Who Mexican American and European American adolescents seek and why

“…In this case, it appears that the internalization of the cultural value of placing the family above the individual is associated with a behavioral approach to managing conflict. The findings of Killoren et al (2008) & Thayer et al (2008) portray Mexican American adolescents as active in conflict resolution and seem to contradict the Schofield et al (2008) finding that Mexican American adolescents are less likely to use direct eye contact with their parents. Rather it is possible that expressions of conflict behavior may differ based on the adolescent’s relationship to the conflict partner (sibling versus parent), thus, having different cultural meanings and consequences for how conflict is resolved within families.…”

“…For instance, when Mexican American adolescents show a more familistic orientation they also tend to use more active and solution-oriented conflict strategies for conflict resolution, regardless of whether the conflict partner was a sibling (Killoren, Thayer, & Updegraff, 2008) or friend (Thayer, Updegraff, & Delgado, 2008). In this case, it appears that the internalization of the cultural value of placing the family above the individual is associated with a behavioral approach to managing conflict.…”

The mediating role of interpersonal competence between adolescents' empathy and friendship quality: A dyadic approach

“…For instance, one study found that adolescents who are higher in empathy use more compromising strategies, are more likely to discuss issues with friends, and are less likely to become angry when resolving conflicts with friends (de Wied, Branje, & Meeus, 2007). Furthermore, because better conflict resolution strategies are related to lower friendship discord during adolescence (Thayer, Updegraff, & Delgado, 2008), we argued that adolescents who were higher in empathy would demonstrate greater conflict management competence, which would lead to less friendship conflict (Hypothesis 1b).…”

Peer Relationships in Adolescence

“…Observational studies of such specific friendship processes would provide a better sense of what happens when one friend " crosses the line " and engages in behavior that damages, rather than enhances, the relationship. Little is known about the specific relationship repair mechanisms that adolescents enact to allow relationships to continue after conflicts, although there has been some effort in self -report studies to explore common conflict resolution strategies that adolescents employ (Thayer, Updegraff, & Delgado, 2008 ).…”