Parent-Child Emotional Communication and Children's Coping in Middle Childhood

Parent–child communication regarding children's negative emotions and coping were examined in a sample of 75 5th graders (53% boys) and their mothers and fathers. We predicted that emotionally open communication between a parent and his or her child would be related to children's use of co...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Social development (Oxford, England) England), 2005-11, Vol.14 (4), p.591-612
Main Authors: Gentzler, Amy L., Contreras-Grau, Josefina M., Kerns, Kathryn A., Weimer, Barbara L.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adjustment
Children & youth
Coping
Coping strategies
Elementary School Students
Emotional Response
Emotions
Fathers
Grade 5
Interpersonal communication
Measures (Individuals)
Mothers
Negative Attitudes
Negative emotions
Parent Attitudes
Parent Child Relationship
Parent-Child communication
Parents & parenting
Task Analysis
Young children
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Parent–child communication regarding children's negative emotions and coping were examined in a sample of 75 5th graders (53% boys) and their mothers and fathers. We predicted that emotionally open communication between a parent and his or her child would be related to children's use of constructive coping strategies. Parents reported on how they react to their child's negative emotions, and children reported on how much they share their negative feelings with each parent. Additionally, emotional communication was measured during a parent–child discussion task involving an event that was upsetting to the child. The results indicated that emotional communication, as reported by mothers, fathers, and children, as well as mother–child observed communication, were related to children's coping strategies. The findings point to a need to assess emotional communication using multiple measures that tap both the child's and the parents’ perspectives and that use different methodologies.
ISSN:0961-205X
1467-9507
DOI:10.1111/j.1467-9507.2005.00319.x