The roles of parenting, resilience, and interpersonal relationships on adolescents' mental health and stress-related growth during COVID-19

Abstract

Background The present longitudinal study investigated parenting style as a precursor for Chinese adolescents' stress-related growth and mental health difficulties during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as the mediating roles of intrapersonal resilience and interpersonal relationships (i.e., peer and parent−adolescent).

Methods Chinese adolescents in a middle school (7th grade) and their parents in Beijing, China, were invited to complete a survey at two time points (T1: September 2020, T2: June 2021). A total of 206 adolescents (52.9% boys; Mage = 12.90 years, SDage = 0.33) and parents (17.5% fathers, 82.4% mothers; Mage = 43.50 years, SDage = 4.76 years) were included in this study.

Results Results showed that Chinese parents' authoritarian, not authoritative parenting, predicted adolescents' mental health difficulties nine months later. In addition, parent−adolescent relationships, but not peer relationships nor resilience, mediated the relations between parenting style and stress-related growth. Adolescents' resilience predicted fewer mental health difficulties.

Conclusion It is important to target multiple ecologies (e.g., family) of adolescents for promoting positive adjustment.