Longitudinal Transmission of Conflict Management Styles Across Inter-Parental and Adolescent Relationships

Abstract

This study longitudinally investigated transmission of conflict management styles across inter‐parental, adolescent–parent, adolescent–friend, and adolescent–partner relationships. During four waves, 799 middle‐to‐late adolescents (Mage‐t1 = 15.80; 54% boys) and their parents completed the Conflict Resolution Style Inventory. Cross‐lagged path analyses indicated transmission of adolescent conflict management styles in relationships with parents to relationships with friends and romantic partners: Positive problem solving and conflict engagement utilized by adolescents in conflicts with parents were significantly, positively related to, respectively, adolescent positive problem solving and conflict engagement in relationships with friends 1 year later and relationships with partners 2 years later. Thus, the study showed that the way adolescents manage conflicts with parents predicts how they handle conflicts later in relationships outside the family.