Parent-child communication about sex is widely understood to be important to sexual health and wellness of adolescents and young adults. Though parents report wanting to communicate with their children comprehensively, adolescents often report this communication does not meet their needs. This study uses symbolic interactionism to explore how parents understand and make meaning of family communication about sex and how these meanings influence their decision making when it comes to family communication about sex. Eight couples participated in an observed development of plans to communicate with their children about sex and semi-structured dyadic interviews about their decision-making process. Transcriptions of the observational data and interviews were analyzed alongside the written plans developed during data collection using grounded theory methodology. Parents recognized communication with their children about sex to be an important opportunity to keep their children safe and prevent negative experiences while instilling values that will help children make healthy decisions. Rather than prescribing specific topics of conversation and times to communicate with them, parents focused on fostering strong relationships with their children and shared they would allow their kids to direct conversations. They identified clear goals for communication with their children about sex, but hoped to do things differently than their own parents by being open to questions their children bring up and addressing issues as they arise. / Doctor of Philosophy / Parent-child communication about sex has been shown to help adolescents develop into sexually healthy adults. Parents report wanting to talk to their children about sex, but children often share that this communication does not meet their needs. This study explores how parents understand and make decisions with their partners about parent-child communication about sex. Eight couples with children in fourth grade or younger participated in an observation and interview during which they were asked to develop a plan for talking to their kids about sex and then explore some of the factors that influenced their decisions. Using a grounded theory methodology, the transcribed observations and interviews were coded alongside the actual plans parents developed to understand the process through which they understood parent-child communication about sex and how they made decisions. Parents considered parent-child communication about sex to be important in keeping their kids safe from harm and preventing potentially negative experiences. They considered this communication to be an opportunity to instill values that will help their children make their own decisions in the future. To make decisions, parents considered conversations they had with their own parents and explored how they would improve on those conversations by fostering open relationships with their children and allowing their children to bring up topics of conversation. Implications for research and clinical practice are provided.

abstract: Dangerous drinking on college campuses is a significant public health issue. Over the last decade, the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services have called on universities, community leaders, policymakers, parents and students to work together to develop effective, research based alcohol prevention and/or intervention programs. Despite such calls, parent-based prevention programs are relatively rare on college campuses, and there is a paucity of research on the ways in which parents influence their emerging adult children's drinking behaviors. The present project is designed to help address this need. Grounded in social cognitive theory, this exploratory study focuses on alcohol communication and poses numerous questions regarding the alcohol messages exchanged between college students and their parents, as well as how such messages associate with college students' dangerous drinking. Undergraduate students ages 18 to 25 who were enrolled in communication classes were recruited for the study and asked to recruit a parent. The sample included 198 students and 188 parents, all of whom completed an online survey. Results indicated the majority of college students have had alcohol conversations with a parent since the student graduated from high school. Parents viewed such conversations as significantly more open, direct, and ongoing than did students; though both generally agreed on the content of their alcohol communication, reporting an emphasis on the negative aspects of drinking, particularly the dangers of drinking and driving and the academic consequences of too much partying. Frequent discussions of drinking risks had significant, positive associations with students' dangerous drinking, whereas parents' reports of discussing rules about alcohol had a significant negative association with students' alcohol consumption. There were strong significant associations between the types alcohol topics discussed and students' perception that their parents approved of their drinking, as well as parents' actual approval. Perceived approval had a significant, positive association with students' dangerous drinking; however, actual parental approval was not a significant predictor of students' drinking outcomes. Parents' alcohol consumption had a significant positive association with students' alcohol consumption. Implications for parents, public health practitioners, and future research are discussed. / Dissertation/Thesis / Ph.D. Communication 2011

<p>Although many communication scholars have explored how parents and children navigate difficult conversations about taboo topics, little to no research exists concerning pornography, specifically from the perspective of the child. To fill this research gap, the following qualitative study utilized a narrative framework and methodology to explore characteristics in parent-child conversations about pornography that illicit positive or negative perceptions from children about those conversations. 18 young adults (18-25 years old) participated in semi-structured interviews in which they shared stories about conversations they had with their parents about pornography. Five major themes surfaced from the thematic analysis of the data: (1) <i>open/closed relationship</i>, (2) <i>discussion-/lecture-based conversation structure</i>, (3) <i>specificity/ambiguity of conversation details</i>, (4) <i>affirmation/denial of curiosity</i>, and (5) <i>appropriate/inappropriate conversation context</i>. The findings have theoretical implications and contextual contributions for family communication scholars in further exploring the topic of pornography as well as practical insights for parents to reflect upon in seeking to strengthen their conversations about pornography with their children.</p>

The purpose of this study was to investigate the developmental outcomes of Chinese American children's social competence in their transition to elementary school. In this study, I used a mixed-methods research design. The first part of the study was a secondary analysis of data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Kindergarten Cohort. I examined cultural differences in the effects of parental warmth, parental SES, parent-child communication, and children's participation in peer-oriented structured extracurricular activities on the social development of European American and Chinese American children. For the second part of the study, I developed questions based on the findings of the quantitative analysis and conducted interviews to further explore how Chinese immigrant mothers' parenting beliefs and practices contributed to their children's development of social competence. The results showed that in Chinese immigrant families, parental SES influenced parent-child communication, which in turn promoted children's social competence. Parental SES, but not parental warmth, predicted their children's participation in peer-oriented structured extracurricular activities. Years of stay in the U.S. positively predicted children's participation in peer-oriented structured extracurricular activities, while it negatively predicted parent-child communication in Chinese immigrant families. The qualitative data suggested that Chinese immigrant mothers facilitated their children's social development by giving them verbal guidance for peer problems, encouraging conversations at home, and serving as role models for their children. Children's activity participation was restricted by the affordability of activities and parents' ability to provide transportation for their children. The Chinese immigrant mothers perceived taking on daily responsibilities and spending quality time together with their children as ways to express love toward them. These mothers' childrearing practices were influenced by the generational gap and acculturation. This study broadens our understanding of Chinese American children's development of social competence in their transition to formal schooling. It contributes new knowledge about 1) cultural differences in the effects of parental warmth and SES on parent-child communication; 2) the influences of parental SES on parent-child communication and Chinese American children's participation in peer-oriented structured extracurricular activities; and 3) the effect of years of stay in the U.S. on parent-child communication in Chinese immigrant families. / text

Twenty-seven parents with young children were randomly assigned to an experimental group which underwent an affective skill-building program, or one of two control groups. Pre and postassessments measured levels of communication, discrimination, and child vocalization for each parent. Multilinear regression analysis indicated that final communication skills among the three groups were significantly different. Final communication skills of the experimental group were significantly greater than those of the Hawthorne control group. Final discrimination skills for the three groups showed a trend toward being significantly different. Levels of child vocalization did not show significant changes. The experimental program was successful in improving accurate parent-child communication in the affective realm.

Tobacco use and the associated health risks are a major public health concern. Research suggests that parents’ own tobacco use, caregiver-adolescent antismoking communication, and parenting practices (e.g., prompting, parental monitoring) may work to influence adolescents’ tobacco-related attitudes and behavioral outcomes (e.g., refusal efficacy, intentions to use and actual use). Although historically African American adolescents have exhibited lower rates of tobacco use than their racial/ethnic counterparts, there is growing evidence to suggest that this may be changing because of increased use of tobacco products and/or underreporting of the use of alternative tobacco products or ATPs (e.g., cigars, cigarillos), among this population. The present study recruited a community-based sample of 101 urban African American caregivers that smoke (M = 41.1/SD = 9.9), and their adolescents between the ages of 12-17 (M = 14.4/SD = 1.9) to examine how caregiver tobacco-related messages (both verbal and non-verbal) shape adolescents’ tobacco attitudes, and behaviors. Dyads completed paper-pencil surveys separately and were compensated for their time and effort. A majority of the caregivers were single and living in low-income and public housing communities. Results from the analyses revealed high rates of adolescent tobacco use (lifetime) of both cigarettes and alternative tobacco products, and prompting (e.g., caregivers’ request that adolescents retrieve, buy, or smoke tobacco products with them). The findings also showed that all of the caregiver variables including: prompting, monitoring, as well as caregiver antismoking messages together impacted adolescents’ tobacco-related outcomes including their attitudes about tobacco, refusal efficacy and their intentions to use (at six months and adulthood), and their actual use. These findings underscore the need for more tobacco education that includes not only adolescents, but also parents, and other important caregivers (e.g., extended kin/family members) that helps increases knowledge surrounding the dangers of parental prompting, the importance of parental monitoring of youths whereabouts and peers, as well as parent-adolescent antismoking communication in reducing the prevalence of adolescent smoking/tobacco use (including the use of ATPs). This study also highlights the need for tobacco control and policies that limit adolescents’ exposure and access to tobacco products particularly among African Americans living in disadvantaged neighborhoods.

<p>Traditionally seen as a time for increasing independence and autonomy, the college experience is often the first major, long-term physical separation from parents (Chickering, 1969; Chickering & Reisser, 1993). For previous generations, living away from home provided conditions for autonomy development partially based on infrequent contact with parents. In contrast, the rapid evolution of communication technology in the recent past allows today's generation of college students to connect to their parents instantly and frequently through a variety of electronic means including cellular phone calls, text messages, emails, video chats, and social media. The current study used self-report data from 180 residential college students at a mid-sized private institution in the southeastern United States to explore parent-child communication patterns as they relate to parenting styles and the development of emotional autonomy and adjustment to college. Emotional autonomy was measured with items from the Emotional Autonomy Scale (EAS; Steinberg & Silverberg, 1986). Following Beyers, Goossens, Van Calster, & Duriez (2005), a separation scale (derived from the EAS subscales of parental deidealization, nondependence on parents, and individuation) was used as a measure of emotional autonomy. Two scales from the Student Adaptation to College Questionnaire (Baker & Siryk, 1989) measured students' academic and social adjustment to college.</p><p>Results indicated that, in a given week, students reported an average contact frequency (with both parents combined) of 10.92 cell phone calls, 49.88 text messages, and 6.04 email exchanges. Contact was initiated by students and parents at roughly the same rates, and females had more contact with parents than males, in general. Facebook was more popular than Twitter and Instagram for connecting with parents through social media, and the majority of students felt either neutral or positive about being "Facebook friends" with their parents. Overall, students reported high satisfaction with both the frequency and the quality of communication with their parents. Greater levels of parental closeness significantly predicted higher satisfaction with the parent-child Facebook friendship. </p><p>The relationships between the traditional parenting styles of permissive, authoritative, and authoritarian parenting (Baumrind, 1991) were investigated in relation to communication patterns, autonomy, and adjustment. Helicopter parenting was also included as a predictor variable, though it is considered separate from the traditional parenting styles (Padilla-Walker & Nelson, 2012). Results of hierarchical regression analyses indicated that parents' higher scores on authoritarian parenting and helicopter parenting predicted more frequent cell phone contact with parents. Parental closeness also emerged as a significant, positive predictor of frequency of cell phone and total communication. Students who talked on their cell phones more frequently overall (not including parental contacts) tended to talk to their parents more often on the phone, and the same went for texting, as well. </p><p>Helicopter parenting also predicted lower emotional autonomy, which was in line with the only previous study of helicopter parenting in emerging adulthood (Padilla-Walker & Nelson, 2012). Surprisingly, authoritative and permissive parenting significantly predicted lower emotional autonomy, while authoritarian parenting was related to greater autonomy. Analyses investigating frequency of cell phone contact with parents as a moderator of this relationship indicated that more frequent phone conversations predicted decreased autonomy when parents were more authoritative. High levels of authoritarian parenting, on the other hand, resulted in higher levels of autonomy regardless of how often students talked on the phone with parents, while high contact with less authoritarian parents predicted decreased autonomy. Frequency of cell phone contact with parents was unrelated to academic and social adjustment to college. Findings are discussed in light of previous research and situated within a framework proposing that technological advances in communication have contributed to lengthening the path to adulthood.</p> / Dissertation

This thesis explores communication with children affected by sickle cell disease about their condition from the perspectives of both children and parents. It includes three papers: A literature review, an empirical paper and a critical appraisal. Papers one and two have been prepared for submission to Social Science and Medicine and Qualitative Health Research, respectively. Paper one is a meta-synthesis of qualitative literature investigating experiences of communication from the perspective of children with sickle cell disease. A systematic literature search revealed nine relevant papers, which were synthesised by extracting findings related to communication about sickle cell disease. Children were found to receive inconsistent messages about their condition from different personal and professional groups. Communication about the prognosis of sickle cell disease and the social acceptability of the condition differed across the groups. The implications for children's understandings of their condition and their adjustment are discussed. Paper two presents an empirical study of parental communication experiences with children affected by sickle cell disease. Twelve interviews were conducted and subject to inductive thematic analysis which was applied within a contextualist epistemological framework. Parents described skills in 'coaching' their child to negotiate the various challenges associated with managing sickle cell disease. They also described ways in which they avoided challenging topics of communication such as inheritance, the risk of comorbid disease and the life-long nature of the condition. The findings suggest a need for healthcare professionals to support parents in overcoming barriers to talking about difficult topics. This may facilitate more consistent communication between parents and professionals, which has implications for improving child wellbeing and adjustment. Paper three is a reflective piece and is not intended for publication. It critically evaluates papers one and two and discusses the joint implications of the findings for research and clinical practice. Reflections on the experience of conducting a meta-synthesis and an empirical qualitative study are offered in the context of personal and professional development.

Family communication has the potential to affect a variety of youth behavioral outcomes including adolescent sexual risk behavior. Within chapter 1, I present past literature on adolescent sexual risk behaviors, family communication patterns, and the gaps associated with those areas. In chapter 2, I review previous literature on adolescent sexual risk behavior, parent-child communication and family communication patterns. In chapter 3, I present the method which includes a description of the participants, procedures, measures, and data analysis used. In Chapter 4, I present the results of the study. According to the results of the study, father-child communication is not a better predictor of adolescent sexual risk behavior. A higher quantity of parent-child communication does not lead to less adolescent sexual risk behavior. Participants with a pluralistic family type do significantly differ from laissez-faire and protective family types in regards to levels of parent-child communication. Participants with a consensual family type do have significantly higher levels of parent-child communication in comparison to laissez-faire family types, but not protective family types. Finally, in chapter 5, I present the discussion with a review of previous research (consistent or inconsistent with the current findings), limitations and conclusions for the current study.

No description available.