Examining Trends in Parent-Child Communication in Europe Over 12 Years

Abstract

The aim of this study was to analyze changes in communication with parents about matters of concern to 11-and 13-year olds. Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) surveys conducted in Austria, the Czech Republic, /06 were analyzed by means of cluster analysis and analysis of variance. The results show that in most countries, the percentages of adolescents reporting difficulties in communication with parents increased from 1993/94 to 1997/98, and decreased afterwards. Analyses divided the countries into three groups with similar parent-child communication changes. These groups were neither related to the East-West division, nor to family structure differences. The confirmed cultural convergence Articles

Trends in Parent-adolescent Communication in the Czech Republic between 2002 and 2014: Results of the HBSC Study.

“…(14,35,36). The checklist of close persons included father, stepfather (or mother's boyfriend), mother, and stepmother (or father's girlfriend) with the response options of very easy, easy, difficult, very difficult, and don't have or see this person.…”

“…Given the large number of children living in stepfamilies, it is also important to understand how adolescents perceive communication with their non-biological parents over time. The current study builds upon recent research on factors that are associated with adolescents' communication in intact and stepfamilies (12,15,17) and extends the knowledge about changes in parent-adolescent communication at the beginning of the new millennium (14,34). It examines the secular trend in the perceived ease of parent-adolescent communication within a large and representative adolescent population.…”

“…To maintain easy parent-adolescent communication, experts recommend to respect developmental changes in adolescents and communication based on mental support, discussion and negotiation (14).…”

“…Among adolescents, the mother rather than the father is perceived as understanding and communication with her is easier (14,29). Especially girls tend to experience more difficulties in talking with their fathers, both biological and stepfathers (24,30).…”

“…Older adolescents are more likely to find difficulties in communication with their parents than their younger counterparts (14,15). However, these patterns of communication separation are understandable and they might even lead to the recovery of closeness in the future (12).…”