Abstract
The family is a long-term, intergenerational network of interacting actors. This chapter takes a person-centered approach to examine the dynamics of mother-child relationships from adolescence to adulthood, and the associations of these trajectories with adult child well-being. The authors present empirical findings from the two-generation Youth Development Study, where more than 1000 9th graders have been followed for over two decades. A growth mixture model latent trajectory analysis identified three pathways of G1 mother and G2 child relationship quality: persistently close relationships as youth moved from adolescence to adulthood, initially lower but increasing closeness over time, and diminishing closeness through the transition to adulthood. The chapter reports an examination of these trajectories in relation to G2 adult mental health, finding that the two trajectories indicating problematic mother-child relationships, either in adolescence or in adulthood, are associated with higher adult depressed mood and lower self-esteem.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Similar content being viewed by others
Notes
- 1.
Using a question about whether a G1 parent had recently remarried at each time point, descriptive analyses were conducted to assess stability of stepparent relationships (e.g., to ensure that answers about stepmothers did not refer to different stepmothers at different time points). Only one out of those who identified stepmothers as a primary parent indicated that one of their parents remarried. Thus, 97% of respondents with stepmothers indicated no ambiguity about their primary mother figure, suggesting that relationships with stepmothers had a highly stable referent.
- 2.
Missing data was addressed using full information maximum likelihood or multiple imputation depending on the capacity of the statistical software (Johnson and Young 2011).
- 3.
Growth mixture models were also conducted for perceived closeness with fathers from adolescence to adulthood. However, the resulting entropy (separation between classes) was low, suggesting that treating perceived closeness with fathers as a continuous variable was preferable (results available upon request).
References
Amato, P. R. (1994). Father-child relations, mother-child relations, and offspring psychological well-being in early adulthood. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 56(4), 1031–1042.
Andersson, M. A. (2014). The long arm of warm parenting: A sex-matching perspective on adult children’s physical health. Journal of Family Issues, 37(7), 879–901. http://doi.org/10.1177/0192513X14532256.
Aquilino, W. S. (1997). From adolescent to young adult: A prospective study of parent-child relations during the transition to adulthood. Journal of Marriage and Family, 59(3), 670–686. https://doi.org/10.2307/353953.
Attar-Schwartz, S., Tan, J., & Buchanan, A. (2009). Adolescents’ perspectives on relationships with grandparents: The contribution of adolescent, grandparent, and parent–grandparent relationship variables. Children and Youth Services Review, 31(9), 1057–1066. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2009.05.007.
Branje, S. J., Hale, W. W., III, Frijns, T., & Meeus, W. H. (2010). Longitudinal associations between perceived parent-child relationship quality and depressive symptoms in adolescence. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 38(6), 751–763. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10802-010-9401-6.
Bucx, F., & van Wel, F. (2008). Parental bond and life course transitions from adolescence to young adulthood. Adolescence, 43(169), 1–88.
Buhl, H. M. (2007). Well-being and the child–parent relationship at the transition from university to work life. Journal of Adolescent Research, 22(5), 550–571. https://doi.org/10.1177/0743558407305415.
Clark, S., & Muthén, B. (2009). Relating latent class analysis results to variables not included in the analysis. Retrieved from https://www.statmodel.com/download/relatinglca.pdf
DuBois, D. L., & Flay, B. R. (2004). The healthy pursuit of self-esteem: Comment on and alternative to the Crocker and Park (2004) formulation. Psychological Bulletin, 130(3), 415–420. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.130.3.415415.
Elder, G. H. (1998). The life course as developmental theory. Child Development, 69(1), 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8624.1998.tb06128.x.
Elder, G. H., & Giele, J. Z. (2009). The craft of life course research. New York: Guilford Press.
Englund, M. M., Sally, I., Kuo, C., Puig, J., & Collins, W. A. (2011). Early roots of adult competence. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 35(6), 490–496. https://doi.org/10.1177/0165025411422994.
Finch, M. D., Shanahan, M. J., Mortimer, J. T., & Ryu, S. (1991). Work experience and control orientation in adolescence. American Sociological Review, 56(5), 597–611.
Flouri, E., & Buchanan, A. (2003). The role of father involvement in children’s later mental health. Journal of Adolescence, 26(1), 63–78. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-1971(02)00116-1.
Fuligni, A. J., & Masten, C. L. (2010). Daily family interactions among young adults in the United States from Latin American, Filipino, East Asian, and European backgrounds. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 34(6), 491–499. https://doi.org/10.1177/0165025409360303.
Frank, F. F., & Hughes, M. E. (1995). Social capital and successful development among at-risk youth. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 57(3), 580–592.
Furstenberg, F. F. (1999). Managing to make it: Urban families and adolescent success. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Furstenberg, F. F. (2010). On a new schedule: Transitions to adulthood and family change. The Future of Children, 20(1), 67–87. https://doi.org/10.1353/foc.0.0038.
Galambos, N. L., & Kotylak, L. A. (2011). Transformations in parent-child relationships from adolescence to adulthood. In B. Laursen & W. A. Collins (Eds.), Relationship pathways: From adolescence to young adulthood (pp. 23–42). Los Angeles: Sage.
George, L. K. (2009). Conceptualizing and measuring trajectories. In G. H. Elder & J. Z. Giele (Eds.), The craft of life course research (pp. 163–186). New York: Guilford Press.
Gilligan, M., Suitor, J. J., & Pillemer, K. (2015). Estrangement between mothers and adult children: The role of norms and values. Journal of Marriage and Family, 77(4), 889–908. https://doi.org/10.1111/jomf.12207.
Jager, J. (2011). Convergence and nonconvergence in the quality of adolescent relationships and its association with adolescent adjustment and young-adult relationship quality. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 35(6), 497–506. https://doi.org/10.1177/0165025411422992.
Johnson, D. R., & Young, R. (2011). Toward best practices in analyzing datasets with missing data: Comparisons and recommendations. Journal of Marriage and Family, 73(5), 926–945. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-3737.2011.00861.x.
Jung, T., & Wickrama, K. A. S. (2008). An introduction to latent class growth analysis and growth mixture modeling. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 2(1), 302–317. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1751-9004.2007.00054.x.
Kalil, A., Ryan, R., & Corey, M. (2012). Diverging destinies: Maternal education and the developmental gradient in time with children. Demography, 49(4), 1361–1383. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13524-012-0129-5.
Kaufman, G., & Uhlenberg, P. (1998). Effects of life course transitions on the quality of relationships between adult children and their parents. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 60(4), 924–938. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/353635.
Kenny, M. E., & Sirin, S. R. (2006). Parental attachment, self-worth, and depressive symptoms among emerging adults. Journal of Counseling & Development, 84(1), 61–71.
Kloep, M., & Hendry, L. (2010). Letting go or holding on? Parents’ perceptions of their relationships with their children during emerging adulthood. The British Journal of Developmental Psychology, 28(4), 817–834. https://doi.org/10.1348/026151009X480581.
Lareau, A. (2011). Unequal childhoods: Class, race, and family life (2nd ed.). Berkeley: University of California Press.
Laursen, B., & Collins, W. (2009). Parent-child relationships during adolescence: Contextual influences on adolescent development. In B. Laursen & W. Collins (Eds.), Handbook of adolescent psychology: Vol. 2. Contextual influences on adolescent development (3rd ed., pp. 3–42). Hoboken: Wiley.
Lefkowitz, E. S. (2005). “Things have gotten better”: Developmental changes among emerging adults after the transition to university. Journal of Adolescent Research, 20(1), 40–63. https://doi.org/10.1177/0743558404271236.
Levitt, M. J., Silver, M. E., & Santos, J. D. (2007). Adolescents in transition to adulthood: Parental support, relationship satisfaction, and post-transition adjustment. Journal of Adult Development, 14(1–2), 53–63. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10804-007-9032-5.
Lin, N. (2001). Social capital: A theory of social structure and action. New York: Cambridge University Press.
Lippold, M. A., McHale, S. M., Davis, K. D., Almeida, D. M., & King, R. B. (2014). Experiences with parents and youth physical health symptoms and cortisol: A daily diary investigation. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 26(2), 226–240. https://doi.org/10.1111/jora.12186.
Lucas-Thompson, R. G. (2014). Relationship quality with parents, stressful life events, and cortisol production in emerging adulthood. Emerging Adulthood, 2(2), 92–104. https://doi.org/10.1177/2167696813503313.
Luhmann, M., Hofmann, W., Eid, M., & Lucas, R. E. (2012). Subjective well-being and adaptation to life events: A meta-analysis. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 102(3), 592. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0025948.
McGue, M., Elkins, I., Walden, B., & Iacono, W. G. (2005). Perceptions of the parent-adolescent relationship: A longitudinal investigation. Developmental Psychology, 41(6), 971–984. https://doi.org/10.1037/0012-1649.41.6.971.
McHale, S. H., Crouter, A. C., & Whiteman, S. D. (2003). The family contexts of gender development in childhood and adolescence. Social Development, 12(1), 125–148. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-9507.00225.
Merten, M. J., & Henry, C. S. (2011). Family structure, mother–daughter relationship quality, race and ethnicity, and adolescent girls’ health risks. Journal of Divorce & Remarriage, 52(3), 164–186. https://doi.org/10.1080/10502556.2011.556966.
Norwood, S. J., Rawana, J. S., & Brown, A. (2013). Eating disturbances, interpersonal relationships, and depressive symptoms among emerging adults. The New School Psychology Bulletin, 10(1), 44–53. Retrieved from http://nspb.net/index.php/nspb/article/view/217.
Nylund, K. L., Asparouhov, T., & Muthén, B. O. (2007). Deciding on the number of classes in latent class analysis and growth mixture modeling: A monte carlo simulation study. Structural Equation Modeling, 14(4), 535–569. https://doi.org/10.1080/10705510701575396.
Palkovitz, R., Trask, B. S., & Adamsons, K. (2014). Essential differences in the meaning and processes of mothering and fathering: Family systems, feminist and qualitative perspectives. Journal of Family Theory & Review, 6(4), 406–420. https://doi.org/10.1111/jftr.12048.
Parcel, T. L., Dufur, M. J., & Zito, R. C. (2010). Capital at home and at school: A review and synthesis. Journal of Marriage and Family, 72(4), 828–846. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-3737.2010.00733.x.
Putnam, R. D. (2000). Bowling alone: The collapse and revival of American community. New York: Simon & Schuster.
Restifo, K., & Bögels, S. (2009). Family processes in the development of youth depression: Translating the evidence to treatment. Clinical Psychology Review, 29(4), 294–316. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2009.02.005.
Riggio, H. (2004). Parental marital conflict and divorce, parent-child relationships, social support, and relationship anxiety in young adulthood. Personal Relationships, 11(1), 99–114. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1475-6811.2004.00073.x.
Rosenberg, M. (1965). Society and the adolescent self-image. Princeton: Princeton University Press.
Sarkisian, N., & Gerstel, N. (2008). Till marriage do us part: Adult children’s relationships with their parents. Journal of Marriage and Family, 70(2), 360–376. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-3737.2008.00487.x.
Schenk, N., & Dykstra, P. A. (2012). Continuity and change in intergenerational family relationships: An examination of shifts in relationship type over a three-year period. Current Perspectives on Aging and the Life Cycle, 17(3), 121–132. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.alcr.2012.01.004.
Seiffge-Krenke, I., Overbeek, G., & Vermulst, A. (2010). Parent–child relationship trajectories during adolescence: Longitudinal associations with romantic outcomes in emerging adulthood. Journal of Adolescence, 33(1), 159–171. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.adolescence.2009.04.001.
Shanahan, L., McHale, S. M., Crouter, A. C., & Osgood, D. W. (2007). Warmth with mothers and fathers from middle childhood to late adolescence: Within- and between-families comparisons. Developmental Psychology, 43(3), 551–563. https://doi.org/10.1037/0012-1649.43.3.551.
Sheeber, L. B., Davis, B., Leve, C., Hops, H., & Tildesley, E. (2007). Adolescents’ relationships with their mothers and fathers: Associations with depressive disorder and subdiagnostic symptomatology. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 116(1), 144. https://doi.org/10.1037/0021-843X.116.1.144.
Small, M. L., Morgan, N., Abar, C., & Maggs, J. L. (2011). Protective effects of parent–college student communication during the first semester of college. Journal of American College Health, 59(6), 547–554. https://doi.org/10.1080/07448481.2010.528099.
Sowislo, J. F., & Orth, U. (2013). Does low self-esteem predict depression and anxiety? A meta-analysis of longitudinal studies. Psychological Bulletin, 139(1), 213. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0028931.
Sroufe, L. A. (2005). Attachment and development: A prospective, longitudinal study from birth to adulthood. Attachment & Human Development, 7(4), 349–367.
Staff, J., & Mortimer, J. T. (2007). Educational and work strategies from adolescence to early adulthood: Consequences for educational attainment. Social Forces, 85(3), 1169–1194. https://doi.org/10.1353/sof.2007.0057.
Swartz, T. T., Kim, M., Uno, M., Mortimer, J., & O’Brien, K. B. (2011). Safety nets and scaffolds: Parental support in the transition to adulthood. Journal of Marriage and Family, 73(2), 414–429. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-3737.2010.00815.x.
Swartz, T. T., Mortimer, J. T., & McLaughlin, H. (2014, October 9–11). Family ties across three generations. Society for longitudinal and life course studies, Lausanne, Switzerland.
Thompson, R. J., Dizén, M., & Berenbaum, H. (2009). The unique relations between emotional awareness and facets of affective instability. Journal of Research in Personality, 43(5), 875–879. https://doi.org/10.1177/0265407509106721.
Tsai, K. M., Telzer, E. H., & Fuligni, A. J. (2013). Continuity and discontinuity in perceptions of family relationships from adolescence to young adulthood. Child Development, 84(2), 471–484. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8624.2012.01858.x.
van Gaalen, R. I., & Dykstra, P. A. (2006). Solidarity and conflict between adult children and parents: A latent class analysis. Journal of Marriage and Family, 68(4), 947–960. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1741-3737.2006.00306.x.
Veit, C. T., & Ware, J. E. (1983). The structure of psychological distress and well-being in general populations. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 51(5), 730–742.
Videon, T. M. (2005). Parent-child relations and children’s psychological well-being do dads matter? Journal of Family Issues, 26(1), 55–78. https://doi.org/10.1177/0192513X04270262.
Williams, S. K., & Kelly, D. F. (2005). Relationships among involvement, attachment, and behavioral problems in adolescence: Examining father’s influence. The Journal of Early Adolescence, 25(2), 168–196. https://doi.org/10.1177/0272431604274178.
Acknowledgements
This work was supported by Grant R01HD044138 from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health & Human Development. The Youth Development Study was supported by grants, “Work Experience and Mental Health: A Panel Study of Youth,” from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (HD44138) and the National Institute of Mental Health (MH42843). The findings and conclusions in this report are those of the authors and do not represent the views of the sponsors.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2018 Springer International Publishing AG
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Doty, J.L., Mortimer, J.T. (2018). Trajectories of Mother-Child Relationships Across the Life Course: Links with Adult Well-Being. In: Alwin, D., Felmlee, D., Kreager, D. (eds) Social Networks and the Life Course. Frontiers in Sociology and Social Research, vol 2. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-71544-5_18
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-71544-5_18
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-71543-8
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-71544-5
eBook Packages: Social SciencesSocial Sciences (R0)