Adolescent Affection and Helpfulness Toward Parents:

Abstract

This short-term longitudinal investigation examined the 2-year stability of adolescents’ prosocial behavior toward mothers and fathers and the predictive role of attachment, conflict, and parental influence in adolescents’ prosocial behavior. At Time 1, adolescents (n = 129) in Grades 6, 8, and 10 and their mothers (n = 126) and fathers (n = 104) completed several questionnaires during two in-home visits. Two years subsequently, families (n = 42) completed the same measures from Time 1. In general, adolescents reported less affectionate behavior and helpfulness toward fathers and mothers during early adolescence and middle adolescence. Parents reported no change in adolescents’ behavior. Adolescents’ affection and helpfulness remained stable across 2 years. For adolescent reports, attachment predicted affection, whereas paternal influence predicted helpfulness toward fathers. For parent reports, conflict and parental influence predicted adolescent affection. The use of the relational approach for understanding adolescent prosocial behavior is discussed.