Psychological Development and Education ›› 2023, Vol. 39 ›› Issue (6): 798-807.doi: 10.16187/j.cnki.issn1001-4918.2023.06.05

Previous Articles     Next Articles

Association between Parental Conflict and Peer Attachment: An Examination of the Mediation Effect of Parent-adolescent Attachment and Gender Difference

ZOU Shengqi1, WU Xinchun2   

  1. 1. Center for Mind & Brain Science, Cognition and Human Behavior Key Laboratory of Hunan Province, Department of Psychology, School of Educational Science, Hunan Normal University, Changsha 410081;
    2. Beijing Key Laboratory of Applied Experimental Psychology, National Demonstration Center for Experimental Psychology Education (Beijing Normal University), Faculty of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875
  • Published:2023-11-11

RichHTML

PDF (PC)

Abstract: This study examined the mediation effect of parent-adolescent attachment in the association between parental conflict and peer attachment. A total of 3045 adolescent participated in study and completed the revised Children's Perception of Marital Conflict Scale and Inventory of Parent-child and Peer Attachment. Results showed that parental conflict frequency, intensity and resolution were associated with peer attachment through the mediation effect of father-adolescent attachment, whereas the mediation effect of mother-adolescent attachment was significant only in the association between parental conflict resolution and peer attachment. Gender difference analysis revealed a parent-child sex matching effect of parental conflict frequency and an opposite-sex matching effect parental conflict intensity. There was no gender difference of the mediation effect of parent-adolescent attachment between parental conflict resolution and peer attachment. The results promoted the understanding of parental conflict and the role of children's gender in the family.

Key words: parental conflict, parent-adolescent attachment, peer attachment, adolescent gender difference

CLC Number: 

  • B844
Armsden, G. C., & Greenberg, M. T. (1987). The inventory of parent and peer attachment: Individual differences and their relationship to psychological well-being in adolescence. Journal of Youth Adolescence, 16(5), 427-454.
Allen, J. P. (2008). The attachment system in adolescence. In J. Cassidy & P. R. Shaver (Eds.),Handbook of attachment: Theory, research, and clinical applications (2nd ed., pp. 419-435). New York: Guildford Press.
Andersson, M. A. (2016). The long arm of warm parenting: A sexmatching perspective on adult children’s physical health. Journal of Family Issues, 37(7), 879-901.
Bernier, A., Jarry-Boileau, V., & Lacharité, C. (2014). Marital satisfaction and quality of father-child interactions:The moderating role of child gender. Journal of Genetic Psychology, 175(2), 105-117.
Brown, B. B., & Bakken, J. P. (2011). Parenting and peer relationships: Reinvigorating research on family-peer linkages in adolescence. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 21(1), 153-165.
Cummings, E. M., & Davies, P. T. (2010). Marital conflict and children: An emotional security perspective. New York: The Guilford Press.
Cassidy, J. (2008). The nature of the child’s ties. In Csaaidy, J., & Shaver, P.R.(Eds),Handbook of attachment: Theory, research, and clinical applications(2nd ed.,pp.3-22). New York: The Guilford Press.
Cui, M., & Fincham, F. D. (2010). The differential effects of parental divorce and marital conflict on young adult romantic relationships. Personal Relationships, 17, 331-343.
Cowan, P. A., & Cowan, C. P. (2002). Interventions as tests of family systems theories: Marital and family relationships in children’s development and psychopathology. Development and Psychopathology, 14, 731-759.
Cheung, R. Y. M. (2021). Constructive interparental conflict and child adjustment in the Chinese context: A moderated mediation model of emotional security and disintegration avoidance.Journal of Child and Family Studies, 30(3), 733-745.
Collins, W. A., & Laursen, B. (2004). Changing relationships, changing youth: Interpersonal contexts of adolescent development.The Journal of Early Adolescence, 24, 55-62.
Davies, P. T., & Martin, M. J. (2013). The reformulation of emotional security theory: The role of children's social defense in developmental psychopathology. Development and Psychopathology, 25, 1435-1454.
Di Maggio, R., & Zappulla, C. (2014). Mothering, fathering, and Italian adolescents'problem behaviors and life satisfaction: Dimensional and typological approach. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 23(3), 567-580.
Engels, R. C., Deković, M., & Meeus, W. (2002). Parenting practices, social skills and peer relationships in adolescence.Social Behavior and Personality: An International Journal, 30(1), 3-17.
Eldik, W. M. V., Haan, A. D. D., Parry, L. Q., Davies, P. T., & Prinzie, P. (2020). The interparental relationship: Meta-analytic associations with children's maladjustment and responses to interparental conflict.Psychological Bulletin, 146(7), 553-594.
Fiese, B. H., Jones, B. L., & Saltzman, J. A. (2019). Systems unify family psychology. In B. H. Fiese, M. E. Celano, K. E. Deater-Deckard, E. N. Jouriles, & M. A. Whisman (Eds), APA handbook of contemporary family psychology: Foundations, methods, and contemporary issues across the lifespan, Vol. 1 (pp. 3-19). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Feinberg, M. E. (2003). The internal structure and ecological context of coparenting: A framework for research and intervention.Parenting: Science and Practice, 3(2), 95-131.
Grych, J. H., & Fincham, F. D. (1990). Marital conflict and children’s adjustment: A cognitive-contextual framework. Psychological Bulletin, 108, 267-290.
Grych, J. H., Seid, M., & Fincham, F. D. (1992). Assessing marital conflict from the childK’s perspective: The children's perception of interparental conflict scale. Child Development, 63(3), 558-572.
Harold, G. T., & Sellers, R. (2018). Annual research review: Interparental conflict and youth psychopathology: An evidence review and practice focused update.Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 59(4), 374-402.
Kim, K. L., Jackson, Y., Hunter, H. L., & Conrad, S. M. (2009). Interparental conflict and adolescent dating relationships: The role of perceived threat and self-blame appraisals. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 24(5), 844-865.
Kitzmann, K. M., & Cohen, R. (2003). Parents'versus children’s perceptions of interparental conflict as predictors of children’s friendship quality. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 20(5), 689-700.
Ladd, G. W. (2016). Themes and theories: Perspectives on processes in family-peer relationships. In R. D. Parke & G. W. Ladd (Eds), Family-peer relationships: Models of linkage (pp. 13-49). NewYork, NY: Routledge.
Li, X., & Meier, J. (2017). Father love and mother love: Contributions of parental acceptance to children’s psychological adjustment. Journal of Family Theory & Review, 9(4), 459-490.
Minuchin, S. (1974).Families and family therapy. Oxford: Harvard University Press.
Mota, C. P., & Matos, P. M. (2013). Peer attachment, coping, and self-esteem in institutionalized adolescents: The mediating role of social skills.European Journal of Psychology of Education, 28, 87-100.
Martin, M. J., Sturge-Apple, M. L., Davies, P. T., Romero, C. V., & Buckholz, A. (2017). A process model of the implications of spillover from coparenting conflicts into the parent-child attachment relationship in adolescence. Development and Psychopathology, 29(2), 417-431.
Mastrotheodoros, S., Van der Graaff, J., Deković, M., Meeus, W. H. J., & Branje, S. J. T. (2019). Interparental conflict management strategies and parent-adolescent relationships: Disentangling between-person from within-person effects across adolescence.Journal of Marriage and Family, 81(1), 185-203.
Murphy, T. P., Laible, D., & Augustine, M. (2017). The influences of parent and peer attachment on bullying. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 26(5), 1388-1397.
O’Donnell, E. H., Moreau, M., Cardemil, E. V., & Pollastri, A. (2010). Interparental conflict, parenting, and childhood depression in a diverse urban population: The role of general cognitive style. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 39(1), 12-22.
Olatunji, O. A., & Idemudia, E. S. (2021). The multidimensionality of inter-parental conflict on aggression and mental health among adolescents.Heliyon, 7(5), e07124. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2021.e07124
Pace, C. S., Martini, P. S., & Zavattini, G. C. (2011). The factor structure of the Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment (IPPA): A survey of Italian adolescents.Personality and Individual Differences, 51, 83-88.
Parke, R. D., & Cookston, J. T. (2019). Fathers and families. In Bornstrin, M. H. (Ed), Handbook of parenting (Vol 3): Being and becoming a parent. London: Routledge.
Rohner, R. P. (2014). Parental power and prestige moderate the relationship between perceived parental acceptance and offspring’s psychological adjustment: Introduction to the International Father Acceptance-Rejection Project. Cross-Cultural Research, 48(3), 197-213.
Ruijten, T., Roelofs, J., & Rood, L. (2011). The mediating role of rumination in the relation between quality of attachment relations and depressive symptoms in non-clinical adolescents.Journal of Child Family Studies, 20, 452-459.
Song, H. R., Thompson, R. A., & Ferrer, E. (2009). Attachment and self-evaluation in Chinese adolescents: Age and gender differences.Journal of Adolescence, 32, 1267-1286.
Shelton, K. H., & Harold, G. T. (2008). Interparental conflict, negative parenting, and children’s adjustment: Bridging links between parents' depression and children’s psychological distress.Journal of Family Psychology, 22(5), 712-724.
Saini, M. (2019). Strengthening coparenting relationships to improve strained parent-child relationships: A follow-up study of parents'experiences of attending the overcoming barriers program.Family Court Review, 57(2), 217-230.
Shahinuzzaman, M., Saha, A. K., & Akhtar, S. (2016). Adolescents'perception of inter-parental conflict and impact on psychological distress. Journal of Psychosocial Research, 11(2), 367-376.
Schaeffer, N. C. (1989). The frequency and intensity of parental conflict: Choosing response dimensions.Journal of Marriage and the Family, 51(3), 759-766.
Sherrill, R. B., Lochman, J. E., DeCoster, J., & Stromeyer, S. L. (2017). Spillover between interparental conflict and parent-child conflict within and across days. Journal of Family Psychology, 31, 900-909.
Smith, S., Maas, I., & van Tubergen, F. (2015). Parental influence on friendships between native and immigrant adolescents.Journal of Research on Adolescence, 25(3), 580-591.
Schoppe-Sullivan, S. J., Diener, M. L., Mangelsdorf, S. C., Brown, G. L., McHale, J. L., & Frosch, C. A. (2006). Attachment and sensitivity in family context: The roles of parent and infant gender. Infant and Child Development, 15(4), 367-385.
Schoppe-Sullivan, S. J., & Fagan, J. (2020). The evolution of fathering research in the 21st century: Persistent challenges, new directions.Journal of Marriage and Family, 82(1), 175-197.
Teubert, D., & Pinquart, M. (2010). The association between coparenting and child adjustment: A meta-analysis. Parenting: Science and Practice, 10(4), 286-307.
Weymouth, B. B., Fosco, G. M., Mak, H. W., Mayfield, K., LoBraico, E. J., & Feinberg, M. E. (2019). Implications of interparental conflict for adolescents'peer relationships: A longitudinal pathway through threat appraisals and social anxiety symptoms.Developmental Psychology, 55(7), 1509-1522.
Xuan, X., Chen, F., Yuan, C., Zhang, X., Luo, Y., Xue, Y., & Wang, Y. (2018). The relationship between parental conflict and preschool children's behavior problems: A moderated mediation model of parenting stress and child emotionality.Children and Youth Services Review, 95, 209-216.
Zemp, M., Johnson, M. D., & Bodenmann, G. (2018). Within-family processes: Interparental and coparenting conflict and child adjustment.Journal of Family Psychology, 32(3), 299-309.
Zhou, N., Cao, H., & Leerkes, E. M. (2017). Interparental conflict and infants'behavior problems: The mediating role of maternal sensitivity. Journal of Family Psychology, 31(4), 464-474.
Zou, S., & Wu, X. (2020). Coparenting conflict behavior, parent-adolescent attachment, and social competence with peers: An investigation of developmental differences.Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 49(1), 267-282.
Zou, S., Wu, X., Huang, B., & Liu, C. (2020). Double-edged effect of coparenting on adolescents'emotional instability: An inconsistent mediation model. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 29(5), 1413-1423.
Zou, S., Wu, X., & Li, X. (2020). Coparenting behavior, parent-adolescent attachment, and peer attachment: An examination of gender differences.Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 49(1), 178-191.
池丽萍, 辛自强. (2003). 儿童对婚姻冲突的感知量表修订. 中国心理卫生杂志, 17(8), 554-556.
邓林园, 张锦涛, 方晓义, 刘勤学, 汤海艳, 兰菁. (2012). 父母冲突与青少年网络成瘾的关系: 冲突评价和情绪管理的中介作用. 心理发展与教育, 28(5), 541-544.
胡牡丽, 王孟成, 蔡琳, 朱熊兆, 姚树桥. (2012). 青少年主观社会经济地位量表的初步编制. 中国临床心理学杂志, 20(2), 155-157.
黄敏学, 冯小亮, 谢亭亭. (2010). 消费者态度的新认知:二元化的矛盾态度. 心理科学进展, 18(6), 987-996.
雷雳, 伍亚娜. (2009). 青少年的同伴依恋与其互联网使用的关系. 心理与行为研究, 7(2), 81-86.
李文道, 邹泓, 赵霞. (2008). 大学生同一性发展及其与亲子依恋的关系研究. 首都师范大学学报(社会科学版), (1), 113-119.
周浩, 龙立荣. (2004). 共同方法偏差的统计检验与控制方法. 心理科学进展, 12(6), 942-950.
张姝玥. (2014). 中学生父母, 同伴依恋特点及其与社会适应的关系. 现代中小学教育, (6), 58-61.
钟歆, 刘聚红, 陈旭. (2014). 青少年同伴依恋: 基于发展的视角. 心理科学进展, 22(7), 1149-1158.
伍新春, 郭素然, 刘畅, 陈玲玲, 郭幽圻. (2012). 社会变迁中父亲职能的凸显: 基于生态系统理论的分析. 华南师范大学学报(社会科学版), (6), 56-62.
王争艳, 刘迎泽, 杨叶. (2005). 依恋内部工作模式的研究概述及探讨. 心理科学进展, 13(5), 629-639.
[1] LU Xinzhe, WANG Zhi, LI Yong, WANG Binying. Longitudinal Effects of Parental Violence Exposure on Middle School Students' Problem Behaviors: A Moderated Mediation Model [J]. Psychological Development and Education, 2024, 40(2): 231-239.
[2] HONG Xinwei, MIAO Lingtong, FAN Hang, SONG Minghua, ZHU Tingting, LIU Shen, ZHANG Lin. The Relationship between Parental Conflict and Adolescents' Aggressive Behavior: Roles of Emotional Security and School Connectedness [J]. Psychological Development and Education, 2023, 39(5): 726-734.
[3] LI Tiantian, DONG Huiqin. Children's Perception of Interparental Conflict and Anxiety: The Mediating Effect of Attention to Positive and Negative Information and the Moderating Effect of Gender [J]. Psychological Development and Education, 2023, 39(4): 488-496.
[4] FENG Quansheng, ZHOU Zongkui, SUN Xiaojun, ZHANG Yanhong, LIAN Shuailei. Negative Life Events and Internalizing Problem of Junior Middle School Students: Mediating of Rumination and Moderating of Peer Attachment [J]. Psychological Development and Education, 2023, 39(3): 419-428.
[5] LI Cirong, YANG Yanyu, LI Chunxuan. Interparental Conflict, Adolescents' Daily Self-efficacy and Daily Learning Engagement: The Mediating Roles of Daily Negative Emotion and Daily Rumination in the Moderating Effects of Interparental Conflict Influence [J]. Psychological Development and Education, 2023, 39(2): 236-246.
[6] YANG Chen, LIAN Shuailei, CHEN Chunyu, SUN Xiaojun, ZHOU Zongkui. Peer Attachment and Junior High School Students’ Mobile Phone Addiction:Analysis of a Moderated Mediation Model [J]. Psychological Development and Education, 2022, 38(4): 538-545.
[7] PAN Yangu, ZHANG Dajun, LI Zhiyang. The Effects of Parental and Peer Attachment on Development of Psychological Suzhi among Middle School Students: From Personal-centered Perspective [J]. Psychological Development and Education, 2021, 37(4): 558-567.
[8] XIANG Guangcan, TENG Zhaojun, GUO Cheng, CHEN Hong, MIAO Hualing. Parent-adolescent Attachment and Peer Attachment Associated with Hope: A Longitudinal Study of First-year College Students [J]. Psychological Development and Education, 2021, 37(3): 371-380.
[9] HAN Li, YUAN Jiwei, LONG Yan. Will Moss Bloom like Peonies? The Relationship Between Negative Life Events and Mental Health of Left-behind Children [J]. Psychological Development and Education, 2021, 37(2): 266-274.
[10] PENG Zifang, FU Na, ZHANG Xinjie. The Relationship between Interparental Conflict and Middle School Students' Coping Style: The Chain Mediating Effect of Parental Rearing Style and Emotional Security [J]. Psychological Development and Education, 2020, 36(6): 668-676.
[11] LIU Yan, CHEN Jianwen. The Relationship between Undergraduates' Self-esteem and Social Adaptation: The Chain Mediation Analysis of Positive Core Schema and Peer Attachment [J]. Psychological Development and Education, 2020, 36(6): 694-699.
[12] MA Qianzhi, ZHANG Zhijie. Meaning in Life and Parent-child Attachment of High School Students: The Mediation of Peer Attachment and Time Perspective [J]. Psychological Development and Education, 2020, 36(2): 168-174.
[13] GAO Wen, WANG Yuhong, Fang Zhen, LIU Mingyan. The Roles of Parent-child Triangulation and Psychological Resilience in the Relationship between Interparental Conflict and Adolescents' Problem Behaviors: A Moderated Mediation Model [J]. Psychological Development and Education, 2019, 35(6): 729-739.
[14] HUANG Binbin, ZOU Shengqi, WU Xinchun, LIU Chang. The Association between Father Coparenting Behavior and Adolescents' Peer Attachment: The Mediating Role of Father-child Attachment and the Moderating Role of Adolescents' Neuroticism [J]. Psychological Development and Education, 2019, 35(2): 176-183.
[15] FAN Hang, ZHU Zhuan, MIAO Lingtong, LIU Shen, ZHANG Lin. Impact of Parents' Marital Conflict on Adolescent Depressive Symptoms: A Moderated Mediation Model [J]. Psychological Development and Education, 2018, 34(4): 481-488.
Viewed
Full text


Abstract

Cited
  Shared   
  Discussed   
No Suggested Reading articles found!
Copyright 2018 © Editorial office of Psychological Development and Education
Supported by Beijing Magtech Co.Ltd