Psychological impact of parent-adolescent communication: A critical analysis

Parent-adolescent relationship is an essential part of growing up and it is the key determinant of adolescents’ personality development. Their relationship with their families at this stage determines their character. Studies show there is a significant relationship between parent-adolescents’ communication and adolescents’ psychological well-being. However, the findings are not conclusive. The current quantitative research assessed the level of parent-adolescent communication on adolescents’ self-esteem and perceived stress. Data was collected among 377 Malaysians aged 12 to 17. The ‘parent-adolescent relationship questionnaire’ (PARQ), ‘rosenberg self-esteem scale’ and ‘perceived stress scale-10’ (PSS) were used. The results show that there is a positive correlation between parent adolescent communication and self-esteem r (350) =.390, p=.000 and a negative correlation between self-esteem and level of stress perceived among adolescents at r (350)=-.103, p=.054. The level of correlation shows a more positive relationship between parent adolescent communication, and self-esteem whereas the level of self-esteem does not immensely affect the stress level of these adolescents. Further, it was proven that female adolescents had lower self-esteem and higher stress compared to male adolescents. The study recommends that parents should cultivate good parent-adolescent communication to ensure positive psychological impact on their adolescents.