As adolescents grow up, one of the important developmental tasks is to individuate themselves and to become more autonomous from parents. This requires a realignment of the parent-adolescent communication. The current meta-analytic study aims at identifying developmental changes in parent-adolescent communication, conceptualized within the parental monitoring framework, as entailing parental solicitation, control and knowledge, and adolescent's disclosure and secrecy. Thirty-one longitudinal studies published between 2000 and 2015 were identified and included in the current meta-analysis. Informants, age at assessment and study duration were tested as moderators. Results showed a low to medium normative decline in parental control (Cohen's d = -.395, 95% CI [-.541, -.249]), knowledge (d = -.245,95% CI [-.331, -.160] and adolescence disclosure (d = -.147, 95% CI [-.204, -.090]), and an increase in adolescent's secrecy (d = .194, CI [031, .356]). Parental solicitation decreased based on parents' (d = -.242, 95% CI[-.376, -.109]) but not on adolescents' reports (d = .038, 95% CI[-.099, .175]). Another significant moderator was the duration of the study, with studies longer than 2 years being able to detect a more pronounced change in parental control than studies lasting less than 2 years (<= 2 years, d = -.139 vs. duration > 2 years, d = -.581). Limitations of the current knowledge and new directions of studies are discussed.

The development of parental monitoring during adolescence: A meta-analysis

Lionetti F.
;
2019-01-01

Abstract

As adolescents grow up, one of the important developmental tasks is to individuate themselves and to become more autonomous from parents. This requires a realignment of the parent-adolescent communication. The current meta-analytic study aims at identifying developmental changes in parent-adolescent communication, conceptualized within the parental monitoring framework, as entailing parental solicitation, control and knowledge, and adolescent's disclosure and secrecy. Thirty-one longitudinal studies published between 2000 and 2015 were identified and included in the current meta-analysis. Informants, age at assessment and study duration were tested as moderators. Results showed a low to medium normative decline in parental control (Cohen's d = -.395, 95% CI [-.541, -.249]), knowledge (d = -.245,95% CI [-.331, -.160] and adolescence disclosure (d = -.147, 95% CI [-.204, -.090]), and an increase in adolescent's secrecy (d = .194, CI [031, .356]). Parental solicitation decreased based on parents' (d = -.242, 95% CI[-.376, -.109]) but not on adolescents' reports (d = .038, 95% CI[-.099, .175]). Another significant moderator was the duration of the study, with studies longer than 2 years being able to detect a more pronounced change in parental control than studies lasting less than 2 years (<= 2 years, d = -.139 vs. duration > 2 years, d = -.581). Limitations of the current knowledge and new directions of studies are discussed.
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11564/711051
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