P Schrodt
Biographic Data
| ID | 8868 |
|---|---|
| NAME | P Schrodt |
| GIVEN NAMES | P |
| FAMILY NAME | Schrodt |
| SIGNATURE | SCHRODT P |
| AFFILIATIONS | Texas Christian University |
| ORCID | 0000-0003-0311-1817 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 62 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 463 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 62 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2003 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 13 |
Perceptions of Scientific Recommendations Mediate the Effects of Message Valence on Adult Smokers’ Intention to Use E-Cigarettes to Quit: A Conditional Process Analysis
Although electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) have been widely used by smokers as a quitting device, the explanatory mechanisms and boundary conditions in which message characteristics influence their intention to use e-cigarettes as cessation devices remain unclear. To fill this gap, the current between-subjects experiment investigated how the valence of the messages (pro-e-cigarette, anti-e-cigarette, conflicting recommendations) current smoker…
Family Communication Patterns Theory: Past Developments, Present Applications, and Future Directions
A meta-analytical review of parent–child communication and children feeling caught between parents
This meta-analysis reviews the findings from 38 studies ( N = 19,123) examining the associations between antisocial and prosocial parent–child communication and children feeling caught between parents. Whereas the cumulative evidence indicates a moderate, positive association between antisocial parent–child communication and children feeling caught ( r = .310, k = 31, 95% CI: .261, .357), it indicates a small, negative association between prosoci…
A meta-analysis of children feeling caught between parents and parent-child relationship quality
This meta-analysis reviews the findings from 26 studies ( N = 8,061) examining the association between children feeling caught between parents (also referred to as parent-child triangulation) and parent-child relationship quality. The cumulative evidence indicated a small but meaningful inverse relationship between children feeling caught and relationship quality with parents ( r = −.218, 95% CI: −.260, −.175). The overall effect was heterogenous…
Emerging Adults’ Relational Turbulence with Parents as a Function of Parent Involvement in Their Romantic Relationship: A Conditional Process Analysis
Using relational turbulence theory, this study examined the conditional direct and indirect associations between parent involvement (i.e., facilitation and interference) in emerging adults’ romantic relationships and relational turbulence in the parent-child relationship vis-à-vis the valence of conversations with parents about the romantic partner. Participants included 264 emerging adult children who were involved in a romantic relationship. Pa…
Interparental conflict and parent–child triangulation: A meta-analytical review of children feeling caught between parents
This meta-analysis reviews the findings from 49 studies (N = 23,336) examining the association between interparental conflict and children feeling caught between parents (also referred to as parent–child triangulation). The cumulative evidence indicates a moderate, meaningful relationship between interparental conflict and children feeling caught (r = .402, 95% confidence interval: .366, .437). On average, the positive association was stronger wh…
A Conditional Process Analysis of Emerging Adults’ Motivated Information Management with Parents, Family Conversation Orientation, and Intentions to Vaccinate for Covid-19
Using the theory of motivated information management (TMIM), this study tested the effect of emerging adults' uncertainty discrepancy about COVID-19 vaccines on their intentions to vaccinate. In March and April of 2021, 424 emerging adult children reported on the likelihood of seeking or avoiding information from a parent about COVID-19 vaccines in response to their uncertainty discrepancy and negative emotions related to the vaccines. Results su…
A Conditional Process Analysis of Siblings’ Religious Communication (Non)accommodation, Surface Acting, and Shared Family Identity
This study tested the conditional direct and indirect associations between siblings’ religious (non)accommodation and shared family identity (SFI) vis-à-vis surface acting. Participants included 218 young adults who reported on a target sibling’s (non)accommodation of their religious beliefs, as well as their family’s conversation and conformity orientations. Results indicated that the sibling’s religious (non)accommodation was directly and indir…
Relational Uncertainty, Parent Involvement, and Conversations about the State of the Relationship as Predictors of Relational Turbulence in Romantic Relationships
This study investigated how parent involvement (i.e., parent interference and facilitation) moderates the direct and indirect associations between young adults’ relational uncertainty and turbulence vis-à-vis communication about the state of their romantic relationship. Participants included 264 young adults currently involved in a romantic relationship. Results indicated that parent interference and facilitation are associated with the valence o…
Sexual Minorities’ Uncertainty About Their Romantic Partner’s Communication With Their Family: Applying the Theory of Motivated Information Management
Using the theory of motivated information management (TMIM), this study tested the degree to which sexual minorities’ uncertainty discrepancy about their partner’s communication about their relationship to their family of origin predicted their information management strategies and relational quality (i.e., closeness and satisfaction). Participants included 111 sexual minorities involved in a monogamous romantic relationship. Results supported th…
Religious Conversations and Surface Acting as Predictors of Relational Uncertainty in (Dis)confirming Sibling Relationships
This study examined the associations among frequency and comfort of siblings' religious conversations and their relational uncertainty (RU), as well as the degree to which the associations depended upon surface acting and sibling confirmation (i.e. acceptance and challenge). Participants included 218 young adult siblings who completed an online survey about the sibling with whom they were closest to in age. Results indicated that frequency and co…
Does feeling caught between parents magnify or reduce the association between parents’ nonaccommodation and sexual minorities’ personal-enacted identity gap with family
This study examined the degree to which the association between parents’ nonaccommodation and sexual minorities’ personal-enacted identity gap (PEIG) with their family depends upon feelings of being caught between parents. Participants included 205 sexual minorities who reported on their parents’ unwanted advice about their sexual identity and the degree to which they emphasized divergent values in conversations about LGBTQ+ issues. Reports of bo…
Parents’ Nonaccommodation and Sexual Minorities’ Topic Avoidance and Surface Acting as Mediators of Family Communication Patterns and Shared Family Identity
This study tested parents’ nonaccommodation of their young adult child’s sexual identity and the child’s topic avoidance and surface acting as mediators of family communication patterns (FCPs, i.e., conversation and conformity orientations) and shared family identity (SFI). Participants included 205 sexual minorities who reported on their parents’ nonaccommodation in conversations about LGBTQ+ issues. Both FCP orientations were indirectly associa…
Emerging adults’ financial conversations with parents as mediators of family communication patterns and financial Independence
This study examined emerging adults’ financial conversations with parents as mediators of family communication patterns (FCPs) (i.e., family conversation and conformity orientations) and emerging adults’ financial independence (i.e., financial autonomy and self-efficacy). Participants included 202 emerging adults ages 18 to 25. Whereas conversation orientation positively predicted both financial self-efficacy and autonomy, conformity orientation …
Sanctification, Relationship Maintenance Behaviors, and Closeness Within Parent-Adult Child Relationships
According to sanctification theory, parents and adult children who see their parent-adult child relationships as possessing sacred qualities will be more apt to behave in ways that protect it. Positioning relationship maintenance behaviors as an explanatory mechanism through which sanctification is associated with relational quality in parent-adult child (N = 205 dyads) relationships, an Actor – Partner Interdependence Model Extended to Mediation…
The development and validation of the family coping expectations scale: Socialized responses to adverse life experiences and their associations with personal and relational wellness
Drawing upon schema theory and family communication patterns theory, this study developed and validated a new measure of family coping expectations. Participants included 505 adult children who reported on their family’s expectations for how to communicate and cope with stress and adversity. Results produced a 27-item measure that assessed adults’ perceptions of their family’s coping expectations across four dimensions: rely on family support, av…
Witnessing interparental conflict, feeling caught, and mental health: A conditional process analysis involving parental confirmation and divorce status
This study tested parental confirmation and divorce as moderators of the direct and indirect effects of witnessing interparental conflict (i.e., demand/withdraw patterns and aggression) on young adults' mental health through feelings of being caught between parents. Participants included 493 young adults from first-marriage and post-divorce families. Conditional process analyses revealed that both parental confirmation and divorce status moderate…
A communication and identity process that mediates parents' nonaccommodation and sexual minorities' mental well-being
This study tested sexual minorities' (SM) surface acting with parents, identity gaps with family, and perceived stress as serial mediators of parents' nonaccommodation and SM's mental well-being (i.e., mental health and self-esteem). Participants included 205 sexual minorities who reported on their parents' unwanted advice about their sexual identity and the degree to which they emphasized divergent values in conversations about LGBTQ+ issues. Fo…
Disagreement in perceptions of stepfamily communication and functioning: Implications for mental health
This study tested the degree to which disagreement in perceptions of stepfamily communication and functioning is associated with the mental health of family members. Participants included 119 stepfamily triads from two different regions of the United States. Results indicate that stepfamily dissension and avoidance are inversely associated with the mental health of family members, whereas stepfamily involvement, flexibility, and expressiveness ar…
Perceptions of Fathers’ Confirmation and Affection as Mediators of Masculinity and Relational Quality in Father-Child Relationships
This study tested confirmation and affection as mediators of father’s traditional and new masculinity and young adults’ satisfaction and closeness with father. Participants included 227 young adult children from the Southwest region of the United States. After controlling for divorce status and average talk time with father, the results indicated that perceptions of father’s traditional masculinity are inversely associated with satisfaction and c…
The Frequency and Comfort of Political Conversations with Parents as Mediators of Family Communication Patterns and Relational Quality in Parent–Child Relationships
Using Family Communication Patterns (FCP) theory, this study examined the frequency and comfort of young adults’ political conversations with their parents as mediators of family communication patterns and relational quality in parent–child relationships. Participants included 235 young adults from the United States who were predominantly White, college-educated, and conservative Republicans. After controlling for divorce status, political ideolo…
What is the bar? Differentiating good from great communication scholarship
Every new beginning comes from some other beginning’s end ... Closing Time by SemisonicIt is a tremendous honor and privilege to serve as Editor of Communication Monographs – a premier journal in th
Firefighters' job stress and the (un)intended consequences of relational quality with spouses and firefighter friends
For firefighters, there is reason to believe that relational quality with spouses and firefighter friends might buffer the negative effects of occupational stress both on and off the job. In this study, we examined the associations among firefighters' relationship quality at work and at home, their job stress, job satisfaction, and quality of work life (QWL). We surveyed 428 male firefighters employed at 12 fire stations across Texas. All but one…
Emotion Labor with Parents as a Mediator of Family Communication Patterns and Young Adult Children’s Mental Well-being
This study tested the degree to which emotion labor with parents mediates the associations between family communication patterns (i.e., conversation and conformity orientations) and young adult children’s mental well-being. Participants included 223 young adult children who reported on the frequencies with which they engaged in surface acting and deep acting with their mother and father. Whereas conversation orientation inversely predicted surfac…
The Intergenerational Transmission of Family Communication Patterns: (In)consistencies in Conversation and Conformity Orientations across Two Generations of Family
For 50 years, researchers have used family communication patterns theory (FCPT) to examine the associations among conversation and conformity orientations and a variety of family member outcomes. Despite the explanatory breadth of this general theory, however, researchers have yet to empirically test whether or not family communication patterns (FCPs) are transmitted from one generation to the next. In this study, we sought to advance FCPT by tes…
Feeling caught” as a mediator of adolescents' and young adults' avoidance and satisfaction with their parents in divorced and non-divorced households
Numerous researchers have argued that divorce may not have as much of an impact on children's relationships with their parents as the degree of interparental con.ict (e.g., Ahrons & Rodgers, 1987; Amato, Loomis, &Booth, 1995). In the current model the degree to which adolescents and young adults felt caught between their parents was tested as a mediator between divorce and children's avoidance and satisfaction with them. The results revealed that…
Communication Processes That Mediate Family Communication Patterns and Mental Well-Being: A Mean and Covariance Structures Analysis of Young Adults From Divorced and Nondivorced Families
In this study, demand/withdraw patterns and feeling caught were tested as mediators of family communication patterns and young adults' mental well-being. Participants included 567 young adults from divorced and nondivorced families. For young adults in nondivorced families, family conversation orientations had both a positive, direct effect on mental well-being and an indirect effect on well-being through witnessing marital demand/withdraw patter…
Communication Processes that Predict Young Adults’ Feelings of Being Caught and their Associations with Mental Health and Family Satisfaction
In this study, the degree to which young adults felt caught between their parents was tested as a mediator between marital conflict behaviors and young adults’ mental health and family satisfaction. Participants included 1170 young adult children from first marriage and postdivorce families in four different states. Using structural equation modeling, the results revealed that parents’ symbolic aggression, demand/withdraw patterns, and negative d…
Parental Confirmation and Affection as Mediators of Family Communication Patterns and Children's Mental Well-Being
This study examined the extent to which parental confirmation and affection mediate the associations among family communication patterns (i.e., conversation and conformity) and young adult children's mental well-being (i.e., self-esteem, perceived stress, and mental health). Participants included 567 young adult children from both first-marriage and postdivorce families. Results supported most of the hypothesized relationships among family conver…
Family communication patterns as mediators of communication competence in the parent-child relationship
In this study we examined family conversation and conformity orientations as mediators of the association between young adults' perceptions of their parents' communication competence and their own self-reported communication competence. Participants included 417 young adult children from the United States. Although measurement invariance was established for both sons and daughters, separate models were tested to account for significant difference…
Self-disclosure and relational uncertainty as mediators of family communication patterns and relational outcomes in sibling relationships
This study tested the degree to which self-disclosure and relational uncertainty sequentially mediate the associations among family communication patterns (FCP) (i.e., conversation and conformity orientations) and relational outcomes (closeness and satisfaction) in the sibling relationship. Participants included 329 emerging adults who completed online questionnaires. Three distinct indirect effects emerged for conversation orientation on both re…
Expanding the conceptual and empirical boundaries of family communication patterns: The development and validation of an Expanded Conformity Orientation Scale
Family communication patterns theory (FCPT) explores how family members communicate to create a shared social reality via conversation and conformity orientations. Recently, scholars have noted that the current conceptualization and operationalization of conformity orientation is unnecessarily narrow in scope by representing conformity as controlling and repressive, rather than as cultivating homogenous attitudes, beliefs, and values among family…
The divorce decree, communication, and the structuration of coparenting relationships in stepfamilies
Using Giddens's (1984) structuration theory, this study explored the communicative processes surrounding the divorce decree in coparenting relationships in stepfamilies. Participants included 21 adults who were coparenting children in stepfamilies who completed diary entries of all interactions with coparents over a 2-week period, and who completed follow-up interviews. Results revealed two structures of signification with respect to the divorce …
A Social Relations Model of Everyday Talk and Relational Satisfaction in Stepfamilies
This study examined the intrapersonal and interpersonal mechanisms underlying reported frequencies of everyday talk and relational satisfaction in stepfamilies. Participants included a parent, stepparent, and child from 114 stepfamilies (N =342) from the Midwest and Southwest regions of the United States. Social relations model analyses revealed that everyday talk and relational satisfaction vary across stepfamily relationships as a function prim…
Family legacies: Constructing individual and family identity through intergenerational storytelling
The current study focused on discovering the ways in which the intergenerational transmission of family legacy stories both enables and constrains individual family members’ sense of their own identities. Using semi-structured interviews, 17 third generation family members identified a multitude of both positive and negative family legacies. Both positive and negative legacies were influenced by the storytelling context. Positive legacies portray…
An Introduction to the Special Issue on Family Communication Patterns Theory
Exploring Links Between Well-Being and Interactional Sense-Making in Married Couples' Jointly Told Stories of Stress
Narrative theorizing suggests that narrating stress, difficulty, or trauma can be beneficial for improved mental health, yet extant research tends to consider narrating stress as an individual or psychological construct. However, in close relationships, people often experience shared stressors and jointly tell their shared stories of difficulty to others. Thus, joint storytelling processes likely also relate to individual health. We tested this e…
Feeling caught as a mediator of co-parental communication and young adult children's mental health and relational satisfaction with parents
This study tested young adults' feelings of being caught between their parents as mediators of co-parental communication (i.e., supportive and antagonistic communication) and young adults' mental health and relational satisfaction with parents. Participants included 493 young adult children from intact and divorced families. For participants from intact families, feeling caught mediated indirect effects for both supportive and antagonistic co-par…
The Stepparent Relationship Index: Development, validation, and associations with stepchildren’s perceptions of stepparent communication competence and closeness
There is a growing consensus among family researchers that many of the challenges facing members of stepfamilies revolve around the role of the stepparent. Using schema theory, this study extends recent research on the stepparent role by developing an empirically reliable measure for the primary dimensions that stepchildren identify as part of their stepparent relationship schemas. Participants included 522 young adult stepchildren from 4 differe…
Coparental Communication as a Mediator of Interparental Conflict and Young Adult Children's Mental Well-Being
This study tested young adults’ perceptions of supportive and antagonistic coparental communication as mediators of interparental conflict (i.e., demand/withdraw patterns and aggression) and young adults’ mental well-being. Participants included 493 young adult children from intact and divorced families. Although young adults from divorced families reported higher levels of interparental conflict and antagonistic coparental communication than tho…
A Typological Examination of Communication Competence and Mental Health in Stepchildren
Despite continued interest in communication and family functioning, researchers have been challenged to adequately describe the complicated dynamics and complex configurations of stepfamilies. This study extends previous stepfamily research by classifying stepchildren according to their beliefs and experiences with key dimensions of stepfamily life, and by examining differences in perceptions of communication competence and mental health among di…
Relational uncertainty and communication efficacy as predictors of religious conversations in romantic relationships
This study investigated the associations among relational uncertainty, communication efficacy, and the frequency and comfort of discussing religious topics in romantic relationships. Participants included 204 young adults currently involved in a romantic relationship. Results indicated that relational uncertainty was inversely associated with the frequency and comfort with which dating partners discuss religious (and/or spiritual) topics. Communi…
Emotion Labor with Parents as a Mediator of Family Communication Patterns and Young Adult Children’s Mental Well-being
This study tested the degree to which emotion labor with parents mediates the associations between family communication patterns (i.e., conversation and conformity orientations) and young adult children’s mental well-being. Participants included 223 young adult children who reported on the frequencies with which they engaged in surface acting and deep acting with their mother and father. Whereas conversation orientation inversely predicted surfac…
Self-disclosure mediates the effects of gender orientation and homophobia on the relationship quality of male same-sex friendships
This study tested the degree to which self-disclosure mediates the effects of gender orientation and homophobia on relational satisfaction, closeness, and commitment in men's same-sex friendships. Participants included 211 men from the southwest region of the US, who reported on either geographically close ( n = 107) or long distance same-sex friendships ( n = 104). Results indicated that self-disclosure mediates the positive effect of femininity…
Do Parenting Styles Moderate the Association Between Family Conformity Orientation and Young Adults' Mental Well-Being
This study investigated parenting styles (i.e., authoritative, authoritarian, and permissive) as moderators of the association between family conformity orientation and young adults' self-esteem and depression. Participants included 213 young adult children. Preliminary analyses revealed an inverse association between family conformity and young adults' self-esteem, a positive relationship between mothers' and fathers' authoritativeness and self-…
The Intergenerational Transmission of Family Communication Patterns: (In)consistencies in Conversation and Conformity Orientations across Two Generations of Family
For 50 years, researchers have used family communication patterns theory (FCPT) to examine the associations among conversation and conformity orientations and a variety of family member outcomes. Despite the explanatory breadth of this general theory, however, researchers have yet to empirically test whether or not family communication patterns (FCPs) are transmitted from one generation to the next. In this study, we sought to advance FCPT by tes…
Witnessing interparental conflict, feeling caught, and mental health: A conditional process analysis involving parental confirmation and divorce status
This study tested parental confirmation and divorce as moderators of the direct and indirect effects of witnessing interparental conflict (i.e., demand/withdraw patterns and aggression) on young adults' mental health through feelings of being caught between parents. Participants included 493 young adults from first-marriage and post-divorce families. Conditional process analyses revealed that both parental confirmation and divorce status moderate…
A social relations model of negative relational disclosures and closeness in families
This study examined the intrapersonal and interpersonal mechanisms underlying family member reports of negative relational disclosures and closeness. Participants included a mother, father, and young adult child from 170 families ( N = 510). Social relations analyses revealed that negative relational disclosures and closeness vary across family relationships as a function of actor and relationship effects. Mothers' reports of negative disclosures…
Negative disclosures and feeling caught mediate coparental communication and mental health
This study tested parents' negative relational disclosures and young adult children's feelings of being caught between their parents as mediators of coparental communication (i.e., supportive and antagonistic) and mental health in children. Participants included 225 triads from intact and divorced families. Results indicate that the effects of supportive and antagonistic coparental communication on children's adjustment are more robust for mother…
Negative Parental Disclosures as Mediators of Coparental Communication and Relational Outcomes in Parent-Child Relationships
This study explored the associations among perceptions of coparental communication (i.e., supportive and antagonistic), parents’ negative disclosures, and relational outcomes in parent-child relationships (i.e., closeness and satisfaction). Participants included 241 young adult children who completed online surveys. Results indicate that parents’ negative disclosures to their children mediated the associations between both dimensions of coparenta…
Uncertainty and the Avoidance of the State of One's Family in Stepfamilies, Postdivorce Single-Parent Families, and First-Marriage Families
The current study tested the applicability of uncertainty management theory (URT; Berger & Calabrese, 1975) to information-regulation efforts in families with comparatively different uncertainty levels. Differences in uncertainty and avoidance for parents within the various family types are also discussed. In general, the findings lend further support for URT (e.g., Brashers, 2001) which suggests that in certain situations, such as that of postdi…
Feeling caught” as a mediator of adolescents' and young adults' avoidance and satisfaction with their parents in divorced and non-divorced households
Numerous researchers have argued that divorce may not have as much of an impact on children's relationships with their parents as the degree of interparental con.ict (e.g., Ahrons & Rodgers, 1987; Amato, Loomis, &Booth, 1995). In the current model the degree to which adolescents and young adults felt caught between their parents was tested as a mediator between divorce and children's avoidance and satisfaction with them. The results revealed that…
Becoming "Point and Click" Parents: A Case Study of Communication and Online Adoption
The purpose of this article is to describe the discourse of an adoption online Web site using thematic content analysis. Using the Web site adoptiononline.com as a case study, we discuss potential implications of this new medium on both the construction of family and the adoption process itself. Several themes emerged during our analysis that help family communication scholars better understand online communication in the process of adoption: sub…
A Typological Examination of Communication Competence and Mental Health in Stepchildren
Despite continued interest in communication and family functioning, researchers have been challenged to adequately describe the complicated dynamics and complex configurations of stepfamilies. This study extends previous stepfamily research by classifying stepchildren according to their beliefs and experiences with key dimensions of stepfamily life, and by examining differences in perceptions of communication competence and mental health among di…
The Stepparent Relationship Index: Development, validation, and associations with stepchildren’s perceptions of stepparent communication competence and closeness
There is a growing consensus among family researchers that many of the challenges facing members of stepfamilies revolve around the role of the stepparent. Using schema theory, this study extends recent research on the stepparent role by developing an empirically reliable measure for the primary dimensions that stepchildren identify as part of their stepparent relationship schemas. Participants included 522 young adult stepchildren from 4 differe…
Development and validation of the Stepfamily Life Index
Using schema theory, this study explored the knowledge structures that stepchildren hold about their stepfamilies. Two studies developed a reliable measure of six themes of stepfamily functioning. In Study 1, 251 adult and adolescent stepchildren completed a pilot inventory. Factor-analytic results reduced the pilot inventory from 192 items to 65 items and demonstrated that each dimension could be measured empirically. In Study 2, 586 adult and a…
The divorce decree, communication, and the structuration of coparenting relationships in stepfamilies
Using Giddens's (1984) structuration theory, this study explored the communicative processes surrounding the divorce decree in coparenting relationships in stepfamilies. Participants included 21 adults who were coparenting children in stepfamilies who completed diary entries of all interactions with coparents over a 2-week period, and who completed follow-up interviews. Results revealed two structures of signification with respect to the divorce …
Parental Confirmation and Affection as Mediators of Family Communication Patterns and Children's Mental Well-Being
This study examined the extent to which parental confirmation and affection mediate the associations among family communication patterns (i.e., conversation and conformity) and young adult children's mental well-being (i.e., self-esteem, perceived stress, and mental health). Participants included 567 young adult children from both first-marriage and postdivorce families. Results supported most of the hypothesized relationships among family conver…
Communication Processes that Predict Young Adults’ Feelings of Being Caught and their Associations with Mental Health and Family Satisfaction
In this study, the degree to which young adults felt caught between their parents was tested as a mediator between marital conflict behaviors and young adults’ mental health and family satisfaction. Participants included 1170 young adult children from first marriage and postdivorce families in four different states. Using structural equation modeling, the results revealed that parents’ symbolic aggression, demand/withdraw patterns, and negative d…
Communication Processes That Mediate Family Communication Patterns and Mental Well-Being: A Mean and Covariance Structures Analysis of Young Adults From Divorced and Nondivorced Families
In this study, demand/withdraw patterns and feeling caught were tested as mediators of family communication patterns and young adults' mental well-being. Participants included 567 young adults from divorced and nondivorced families. For young adults in nondivorced families, family conversation orientations had both a positive, direct effect on mental well-being and an indirect effect on well-being through witnessing marital demand/withdraw patter…
A Meta-Analytical Review of Family Communication Patterns and their Associations with Information Processing, Behavioral, and Psychosocial Outcomes
This meta-analysis reviews the findings of 56 studies (n=19,745) examining the associations among family communication patterns (i.e., conversation and conformity orientations) and information-processing, behavioral, and psychosocial outcomes. When both conversation and conformity orientations are considered collectively, the cumulative evidence indicates a small, but meaningful relationship between family communication patterns and overall outco…
A Social Relations Model of Everyday Talk and Relational Satisfaction in Stepfamilies
This study examined the intrapersonal and interpersonal mechanisms underlying reported frequencies of everyday talk and relational satisfaction in stepfamilies. Participants included a parent, stepparent, and child from 114 stepfamilies (N =342) from the Midwest and Southwest regions of the United States. Social relations model analyses revealed that everyday talk and relational satisfaction vary across stepfamily relationships as a function prim…
Family legacies: Constructing individual and family identity through intergenerational storytelling
The current study focused on discovering the ways in which the intergenerational transmission of family legacy stories both enables and constrains individual family members’ sense of their own identities. Using semi-structured interviews, 17 third generation family members identified a multitude of both positive and negative family legacies. Both positive and negative legacies were influenced by the storytelling context. Positive legacies portray…
Family communication patterns as mediators of communication competence in the parent-child relationship
In this study we examined family conversation and conformity orientations as mediators of the association between young adults' perceptions of their parents' communication competence and their own self-reported communication competence. Participants included 417 young adult children from the United States. Although measurement invariance was established for both sons and daughters, separate models were tested to account for significant difference…
Exploring Links Between Well-Being and Interactional Sense-Making in Married Couples' Jointly Told Stories of Stress
Narrative theorizing suggests that narrating stress, difficulty, or trauma can be beneficial for improved mental health, yet extant research tends to consider narrating stress as an individual or psychological construct. However, in close relationships, people often experience shared stressors and jointly tell their shared stories of difficulty to others. Thus, joint storytelling processes likely also relate to individual health. We tested this e…
Coparental communication, relational satisfaction, and mental health in stepfamilies
This study tested a series of actor–partner interdependence models of coparental communication, relational satisfaction, and mental health in stepfamilies. Participants included 127 couples ( N = 254). Results revealed 2 actor‐oriented models whereby parents' and stepparents' coparental communication quality positively predicted their own (but not their partners') satisfaction and mental health. A final model revealed that parents' relational sat…
Stepparents' and nonresidential parents' relational satisfaction as a function of coparental communication in stepfamilies
Using interdependence theory, this study tested a series of actor-partner interdependence models of coparental communication and relational satisfaction among stepparents and nonresidential parents in stepfamilies. Participants included 40 residential stepparent/nonresidential parent dyads ( N = 80). Results revealed significant actor and partner effects for stepparents' and nonresidential parents' reports of supportive and antagonistic coparenta…
Parental confirmation as a mitigator of feeling caught and family satisfaction
This study tested parental confirmation as a mitigator of the inverse association between young adults' feelings of being caught and family satisfaction. Participants included 567 young adult children from intact and divorced families. Results indicated that mother's confirmation mitigated the inverse association between feeling caught and family satisfaction for young adults from divorced families. Family satisfaction was lowest in divorced fami…
Do Parenting Styles Moderate the Association Between Family Conformity Orientation and Young Adults' Mental Well-Being
This study investigated parenting styles (i.e., authoritative, authoritarian, and permissive) as moderators of the association between family conformity orientation and young adults' self-esteem and depression. Participants included 213 young adult children. Preliminary analyses revealed an inverse association between family conformity and young adults' self-esteem, a positive relationship between mothers' and fathers' authoritativeness and self-…
Coparental Communication as a Mediator of Interparental Conflict and Young Adult Children's Mental Well-Being
This study tested young adults’ perceptions of supportive and antagonistic coparental communication as mediators of interparental conflict (i.e., demand/withdraw patterns and aggression) and young adults’ mental well-being. Participants included 493 young adult children from intact and divorced families. Although young adults from divorced families reported higher levels of interparental conflict and antagonistic coparental communication than tho…
Relational uncertainty and communication efficacy as predictors of religious conversations in romantic relationships
This study investigated the associations among relational uncertainty, communication efficacy, and the frequency and comfort of discussing religious topics in romantic relationships. Participants included 204 young adults currently involved in a romantic relationship. Results indicated that relational uncertainty was inversely associated with the frequency and comfort with which dating partners discuss religious (and/or spiritual) topics. Communi…
The Experience and Expression of Stepchildren's Emotions at Critical Events in Stepfamily Life
This study explored the experience and expression of emotions of adult stepchildren during four critical events in stepfamily life. During semistructured, in-depth interviews, 57 adult stepchildren shared stories about four critical events: the parental divorce, remarriage of one of the parents, an event in the stepfamily that generated feeling more like a family, and an event in the stepfamily that generated feeling less like a family. A total o…
Self-disclosure mediates the effects of gender orientation and homophobia on the relationship quality of male same-sex friendships
This study tested the degree to which self-disclosure mediates the effects of gender orientation and homophobia on relational satisfaction, closeness, and commitment in men's same-sex friendships. Participants included 211 men from the southwest region of the US, who reported on either geographically close ( n = 107) or long distance same-sex friendships ( n = 104). Results indicated that self-disclosure mediates the positive effect of femininity…
Feeling caught as a mediator of co-parental communication and young adult children's mental health and relational satisfaction with parents
This study tested young adults' feelings of being caught between their parents as mediators of co-parental communication (i.e., supportive and antagonistic communication) and young adults' mental health and relational satisfaction with parents. Participants included 493 young adult children from intact and divorced families. For participants from intact families, feeling caught mediated indirect effects for both supportive and antagonistic co-par…
A Meta-Analytical Review of the Demand/Withdraw Pattern of Interaction and its Associations with Individual, Relational, and Communicative Outcomes
This meta-analysis reviews the findings of 74 studies (N = 14,255) examining the associations between the demand/withdraw pattern of interaction and individual, relational, and communicative outcomes. When both the individual behaviors of demanding and withdrawing and the pattern of demand/withdraw are considered collectively, the cumulative evidence indicates a moderate, meaningful relationship between demand/withdraw and overall outcomes (r=.36…
Psychology (58 works) · Social Psychology (53 works) · Developmental psychology (51 works) · Attachment and Relationship Dynamics (49 works) · Family Dynamics and Relationships (38 works) · Social Psychology (34 works) · Intergenerational Family Dynamics and Caregiving (24 works) · Closeness (14 works) · Feeling (13 works) · Stepfamily (12 works)