The family context as a foundation for romantic relationships: A person-centered multi-informant longitudinal study

Abstract

This 8-wave person-centered multi-informant study tested whether the quality of parent-adolescent relationships predicted the romantic experiences of young adults and their partners (N = 374; 54.8% girls; Mage = 13.08 years, SDage = 0.48 at the first measurement wave). Perceptions of parent-adolescent relationships were assessed using adolescent, mother, and father reports. Results show that both young adults and their partners reported the highest levels of support, intimacy, and passion when young adults had an authoritative relationship quality with their parents. A distant parent-adolescent relationship quality, however, predicted the lowest support, intimacy, and passion in romantic relationships. Interestingly, the association between parent-adolescent relationships with the experience of young adults' romantic partners was indirect. Parent-adolescent relationships predicted target young adults' romantic relationship experiences, which predicted partners' romantic relationship experiences. Parent-child relationship quality therefore has far-reaching, yet subtle, effects on later romantic relationships, affecting both young adults and their partners.