parent-adolescent relationship and adolescents' adjustment problems

257 Pages·2014·0.85 MB·English

PARENT-ADOLESCENT RELATIONSHIP AND
ADOLESCENTS’ ADJUSTMENT PROBLEMS:
ADOLESCENTS’ VOICES

By
ASAMENEW DEMESSIE BIREDA

Submitted in accordance with the requirements for the degree of
DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY
In the subject
PSYCHOLOGY
at the
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH AFRICA
SUPERVISOR: Dr BEATE VON KROSIGK

23 September, 2013
DECLARATION

I declare that Parent-Adolescent Relationship and Adolescents’ Adjustment Problems:
Adolescents’ Voices is my own work and that all the sources that I have used or quoted have
been indicated and acknowledged by means of complete bibliography.

.................................... 23 September, 2013
MR A D BIREDA
Student Number: 4323-153-5

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I particularly acknowledge Dr. Beate Von Krosigk who not only contributed and
served as my research supervisor but also gave tremendous encouragement and guidance
throughout the writing of this thesis. Indeed I am sincerely thankful and most appreciative for
the time invested, the professional expertise and wisdom with which you guided the writing
of this thesis.

To Prof. Zodwa Motsa, Country Director of UNISA Ethiopia Learning Centre, I am
grateful for the immense language support, frank discussion, reassurance and the
encouragement you gave me throughout the thesis writing. Your openness to engage on
technical writing, personal interest and concern in my welfare and academic progress and
friendly coaching are worth a million thanks. I am indeed grateful to you.

I want to thank my family, specially my mother, for supporting me throughout my
academic endeavours at both undergraduate and graduate level. I never would have made it
without their love, encouragement, and humour over the past several years. I would also like
to express my gratitude to the phenomenal group of colleagues from UNISA Regional
Learning Centre in Ethiopia who have now become close friends of mine. We all began this
journey together only four years ago, yet I have learned a lifetime of valuable lessons both
professionally and personally in the time we’ve known each other.

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I want to thank the participants, who cannot be named, as pseudonyms were used in
this study. Thank you for sharing your most intimate thoughts. Your courage and strength at
recalling your experiences, has opened the doors to others who perhaps will find comfort in
your words. I am forever grateful to have met and got your perception of family relations
and yourself, as this thesis would not have been possible without your contributions. I want
to thank also all parents/guardians who gave consent to allow their children to be part of this
research. Similarly, I want to thank all the school teachers who participated as research
assistants in this study and the school headmasters.

Finally, to my soul mate and best friend, Ms. Helina Mengistu, thank you for being
my pillar of strength, especially since you have embarked on your own, albeit similar
journey. Thank you for understanding, and at times pretending to understand my labile mood
and constant outburst of tears that didn’t warrant an explanation. Thank you for staying put
when it seemed easier to walk away. Thank you for your opinions and input on my
dissertation, but above all for encouraging my passion for knowledge. Your support and
encouragement were invaluable.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ..................................................................................................... iii
ABSTRACT ........................................................................................................................... viii
LIST OF TABLES .................................................................................................................... ix
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION AND ORIENTATION .................................................. 1
1.1 Background to the Study .................................................................................................. 1
1.2 Statement of the Problem ................................................................................................. 9
1.3 Purpose of the Study ...................................................................................................... 10
1.4 Research Questions ........................................................................................................ 11
1.5 Objectives of the Study .................................................................................................. 12
1.6 Significance of the Study ............................................................................................... 13
1.7 Operational Definition of Terms .................................................................................... 14
1.8 Organization of the Study .............................................................................................. 17
CHAPTER TWO: REVIEWING THE LITERATURE .......................................................... 18
2.1 Adolescence ................................................................................................................... 18
2.2 Theoretical Perspectives of Parent-Adolescent Relationships ....................................... 22
2.2.1 Maturational Models ............................................................................................... 23
2.2.2 Models of Relationship Continuity and Transformation ........................................ 24
2.3 A theoretical Perspective for Understanding Adolescent Adjustment .......................... 27
2.4 Conceptualizing Parent-Adolescent Relationships ........................................................ 29
2.4.1 Parenting styles ....................................................................................................... 30
2.4.2 Psychological Control ............................................................................................. 33
2.4.3 Parental Warmth ..................................................................................................... 45
2.4.4 Parental involvement .............................................................................................. 55
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2.4.5 Parent-Adolescent Communication ........................................................................ 61
2.5 The Role of Gender in Parent-Adolescent Relationships and Adolescent .................... 71
Adjustment ........................................................................................................................... 71
2.6 Adjustment Problems ..................................................................................................... 73
2.6.1 Self-esteem .............................................................................................................. 74
2.6.2 Substance use .......................................................................................................... 79
2.6.3 Depression............................................................................................................... 90
2.6.4 School Adjustment .................................................................................................. 96
CHAPTER THREE: METHOD ............................................................................................ 107
3.1. Research Design.......................................................................................................... 107
3.2. Population and Sample ............................................................................................... 109
3.3. Procedure .................................................................................................................... 110
3.4. Data Collection Instruments ....................................................................................... 111
3.4.1. Demographic Data ............................................................................................... 112
3.4.2. Paternal Psychological Control Scale .................................................................. 112
3.4.3. Parental School Involvement ............................................................................... 113
3.4.4. Warmth scale ....................................................................................................... 113
3.4.5. Parent- Adolescent Communication Scale........................................................... 114
3.4.6. Self-Esteem Scale ................................................................................................ 115
3.4.7. Substance use scale .............................................................................................. 115
3.4.8. School Adjustment scale ...................................................................................... 115
3.4.9. Depression scale................................................................................................... 116
3.5. Pilot Study ................................................................................................................... 117
3.6. Reliability and Validity of the Scales ......................................................................... 118
3.7. Data Collection ........................................................................................................... 119
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3.8. Methods of Data Analysis and Statistical Procedures ................................................ 122
3.9. Ethical Considerations ................................................................................................ 124
CHAPTER FOUR: RESULTS .............................................................................................. 126
4.1 Descriptive Statistics of Adolescents’ Socio-demographic Variables ......................... 126
4.2 Descriptive Statistics of Parent-Adolescent Relationship Variables ........................... 130
4.3 Descriptive Statistics of Adolescent Adjustment Variables ........................................ 134
4.4 Relationship between the Mother-Adolescent Relationship and Adolescent’s
Adjustment ......................................................................................................................... 137
4.5 Relationship between Father-Adolescent Relationship and Adolescent's Adjustment 139
4.6 Predicting Adolescent adjustment using Parent-Adolescent Relationship .................. 141
CHAPTER FIVE: DISCUSSION ......................................................................................... 148
5.1 Discussion of Results ................................................................................................... 150
5.2 Limitations of the Study............................................................................................... 160
5.3 Recommendation for Practice in the Ethiopian Context.............................................. 163
REFERENCES ...................................................................................................................... 166
APPENDICES ....................................................................................................................... 212
Appendix A: Letter to School Headmaster/Headmistress ................................................. 212
Appendix B: Letter to Parent/Guardian ............................................................................. 214
Appendix C: Letter to Students and Student...................................................................... 216
Appendix D: Research Instruments ................................................................................... 218
Appendix E : T-test and Regression Analysis ................................................................... 242

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ABSTRACT
The purpose of this study is to examine parent-adolescent relationships as perceived by
adolescents and its relationship with adolescents’ adjustment. In order to measure parent-
adolescent relationships psychological control, involvement, parental warmth and
communication have been used as variables. Furthermore, self-esteem, school adjustment,
substance use and depression are used as measures of adolescents’ adjustment outcomes.
The study’s cross sectional survey design utilized a stratified random sample with structured
questionnaires for the collection of quantitative data involving multiple variables that are
examined to detect patterns of association and prediction. The participants comprise 809
adolescents (Males = 427 and Females = 382) from four private and government high schools
and the average age of participants is 16.8. The participants were randomly selected from
Grade Level 9, 10, 11 and 12. Independent t-test, correlation, and regression analyses are
used to analyse the data in this research. The results of the independent sample t-test on the
perception of adolescents’ relationship with their parents showed that male adolescents
perceive their mothers and fathers as more psychologically controlling than female
adolescents. On the other hand, female adolescents perceive their mothers and fathers as
warmer; more involved in their schooling; and engage in a more positive communication than
do the male adolescents. In addition, the independent sample t-test also shows that male
adolescents exhibit more adjustment problems than do female adolescents. Specifically, male
adolescents seem to show more substance use behaviour, have lower self-esteem, more
school adjustment problems and a higher depression level as compared to female adolescents.
The correlation analysis reveals that there is a significant relationship among the four-parent-
adolescent relationship and adolescent adjustment variables. The regression analysis also
demonstrates that the four-parent-adolescent relation predictor variables account for
adolescent adjustment though their contribution to the prediction was varied by the gender of
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the adolescents’ parents. This research; however, does not consider father-adolescent
communication as a significant predictor to adolescent school adjustment and mother-
adolescent communication as a significant predictor to adolescent depression. Theoretically,
the present findings provide evidence that positive parent-adolescent relationships can be
considered as a relevant protective factor for adolescents. For policy consideration, it is
suggested that efforts be made to establish quality after school youth programs to engage
adolescents in several mentoring activities, and family based coping programs should be
established based on the centrality of the family for better family functioning.
Key Terms: Parent-adolescent relationship; psychological control; warmth; involvement;
communication; adjustment; substance use; self-esteem; school adjustment; and depression

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List of Tables
Table 1 Number of adolescents per school and grade level------------------------------------- 126
Table 2 Number of students by age----------------------------------------------------------------128
Table 3 Adolescents’ fathers and mothers level of education----------------------------------129
Table 4 Means (M) and standard deviations (SD) for parent-adolescent
relationship variables --------------------------------------------------------------------------------130
Table 5 Means (M) and standard deviations (SD) for adolescent adjustment-----------------135
Table 6 Correlations among mother-adolescent relationship and adjustment variables ----137
Table 7 Correlations among father-adolescent relationship and adjustment variables ------139
Table 8.1 Regression model 1 summary-----------------------------------------------------------141
Table 8.2 Regression model 2 summary-----------------------------------------------------------143
Table 8.3 Regression model 3 summary-----------------------------------------------------------144
Table 8.4 Regression model 4 summary-----------------------------------------------------------146
Table 8.1a Main effects and interactions tested to predict
adolescents’ level of substance use-----------------------------------------------------------------242
Table 8.2a Main effects and interactions tested to predict
adolescents’ level of self-esteem--------------------------------------------------------------------243
Table 8.3a Main effects and interactions tested to predict
adolescents’ school adjustment---------------------------------------------------------------------244
Table 8.4a Main effects and interactions tested to predict
adolescents’ level of depression-------------------------------------------------------------------- 245
Table 9 Independent samples test for parent-adolescent relationship variables-------------- 246
Table 10 Independent samples test for adolescent adjustment---------------------------------- 247
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