Physiological Reactivity During Parent-Adolescent Discussions: Associations with Scaffolding Behaviors and Relationship
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ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Physiological Reactivity During Parent-Adolescent Discussions: Associations with Scaffolding Behaviors and Relationship Quality Erika M. Manczak, M.S & Kate C. McLean, Ph.D & Dan P. McAdams, Ph.D & Edith Chen, Ph.D
# The Society of Behavioral Medicine 2015
Abstract Background Parents and adolescents commonly discuss stressful experiences. However, little is known about the features of these conversations that may have implications for health. Methods One hundred five adolescents and their parents engaged in conversations about two challenging events, with parental contributions to the discussions coded for four scaffolding behaviors (reiterations, negations, move alongs, and new interpretations). Systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, and heart rate were measured in both participants at baseline and throughout the conversation. Parent-reported relationship quality was also assessed. Results For both parents and adolescents, negative scaffolding behaviors were associated with increased physiological reactivity, whereas positive scaffolding behaviors were associated with decreased reactivity. Furthermore, children in higher quality parent-child relationships showed greater reactivity to reiterations and lower reactivity to new interpretations, but those in lower quality relationships demonstrated the opposite patterns. Conclusions Specific aspects of parent-child interactions appear to contribute to physiological responses to challenging events, which in turn may have implications for health. Support for this project was provided by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, grant funding reference number 97872. We wish to thank the individuals who participated in this research, as well as Sarah MorrisonCohen for her help with coding. E. M. Manczak (*) : D. P. McAdams : E. Chen Department of Psychology, Northwestern University, Swift Hall Suite 102, 2029 Sheridan Road, Evanston, IL 60208-0001, USA e-mail: [email protected] K. C. McLean Department of Psychology, Western Washington University, Bellingham, WA, USA
Keywords Cardiovascular reactivity . Parent-child conversations . Relationship quality . Adolescents
The disclosure of emotional information—typically assessed in research studies through experimental laboratory writing paradigms—has demonstrated robust associations with health (e.g., [1, 2]). However, disclosures in the real world often occur in the context of interactions with others [3]. One issue that remains unclear is the characteristics of such disclosure interactions that have implications for health-relevant outcomes. The current study seeks to address this gap by exploring aspects of parent-adolescent interaction patterns during discussions of challenging life experiences as they relate to physiological reactivity during these tasks.
Emotional Disclosure Interventions and Health Emotional disclosure interventions improve an array of health outcomes by asking participants to write or talk about an emotionally evocative experience, typically for 15– 30 min
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