Relationship between parental privacy invasion and identity formation during adolescence

Abstract

Privacy is necessary to develop a personal domain in which adolescents can explore their own identity. Adolescents and their parents act upon different definitions of privacy boundaries, which might have consequences for the child's identity development and sense of autonomy. This cross-sectional study is the first to investigate the nature of the relationship between direct and subversive parental privacy invasion and identity formation that also considers the role of autonomy, on the basis of 183 self-reports of adolescents. The results showed that autonomy mediated the relationship between subversive privacy invasion and exploration and commitment. We suggest that subversive privacy invasion is unhealthy, because it reduces adolescents' sense of control. In contrast, direct parental privacy invasion predicted higher levels of exploration and commitment. These differential effects provided insight into the different ways that adolescents experience these invasive behaviors.