Family Time and the Psychosocial Adjustment of Adolescent Siblings and Their Parents

Abstract

This study examined the implications of family time for firstborn and secondborn adolescent offspring, mothers, and fathers in 192 dual‐earner families, defining family time as time shared by the foursome in activities across 7 days. Data were gathered in daily telephone interviews. For firstborns, higher levels of family time at Time 1 predicted less involvement in risky behavior 2 years later, controlling for Time 1 risky behavior. Longitudinal analyses predicting depressive symptoms revealed family time X parent education interactions for firstborns, fathers, and mothers, suggesting that the implications of family time depended on social class. The pattern of results suggests that family time is protective when chosen by family members but not when it represents a default use of time.

What family dimensions are important for health-related quality of life in adolescence?

“…Taking part in family activities is associated with better well-being (Barnett and Gareis 2007;Israel and Roderick 2001;Crouter et al 2004). Therefore, it is important for parents and adolescents to share and enjoy family activities to promote adolescents' health-related quality of life.…”

“…By contrast, overprotective parents who react negatively to their children's individuality impair adolescents' well-being (Canetti et al 1997;Steinberg and Silk 2002). Moreover, activities that are shared with family are associated with fewer internalised behaviour problems (Barnett and Gareis 2007) and better well-being (Israel and Roderick 2001;Crouter et al 2004) in adolescents, as these activities are times shared with family, in which parents and adolescents enjoy time together.…”

Actitudes de padres e hijos hacia un ocio compartido en familia

“…Este tiempo compartido contribuye también a incrementar el grado de satisfacción que el joven tiene con su vida familiar (Agate, Zabriskie, Agate & Poff, 2009;Barnes, Hoffman, Welte, Farrell & Ditcheff, 2007;Offer, 2013;Zabriskie & McCormick, 2001, 2003 de lo que se deriva que el hecho de compartir más tiempo en familia posibilita que progenitores e hijos disfruten de estos beneficios, lo que erige al tiempo compartido en familia en un indicador idóneo del bienestar familiar que depende, además de la cantidad de actividades compartidas, del tipo y la calidad de las mismas (Offer, 2014). Otros autores (Agate et al 2009;Barnes et al 2007;Crouter, Head, McHale & Tucker, 2004;Offer, 2014;Zabriskie et al, 2003;Zaborskis, Zemaitiene, Borup, Kuntsche & Moreno 2007) relacionan la percepción positiva de la calidad de vida de la familia con quienes intercambian más tiempo con sus miembros.…”

“…El ocio compartido en familia ha sido identificado, además, como uno de los principales factores de protección frente al desarrollo de comportamientos de riesgo (Barnes et al, 2007;Crouter et al, 2004;Wong, 2005), de tal modo que aquellos jóvenes que comparten más cantidad de este tiempo con sus familiares son los que tienen una menor probabilidad de desarrollar problemas comportamentales como pueden ser el consumo de alcohol, tabaco u otras drogas, argumento por el que las experiencias de ocio compartidas en familia pueden ser consideradas una estrategia con la que contribuir a reducir el ocio nocivo, que incluye aquellas experiencias que resultan perjudiciales para sus practicantes, así como para el entorno físico y social en el que viven (Cuenca, 2014).…”

Adolescent Depression and Time Spent with Parents and Siblings

“…When relating the quantity of time spent engaged in shared activity to adolescent depressed mood, the quality of interactions and relationships between adolescents and their parents and siblings must be taken into account. In families who spend more time together, parent-adolescent relationships are warmer and more loving, and adolescents report less depression (Crouter et al 2004).…”