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Publication #FAR1212

 

Talking to Your Teens about Dating1

Kate Fogarty and Donna Davis2

Figure 1. 
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Talking to teenagers about dating may seem like a daunting task to some parents who are thinking their teen will assume the "Oh no, not another parent talk again" posture. You know the one—head cocked, eyes rolled, and arms crossed. However, talking about it can be very important in determining how your teen approaches dating and his or her future relationships.

According to family and adolescent researchers, peers may influence a teen's dating life, but parents and families should have the final say. Begin by maintaining a loving, supportive relationship with your teen and keeping open lines of communication.

Be willing to discuss your own relationship experiences with your teen. Share how you define a healthy versus unhealthy relationship. If you're currently in a significant relationship, serve as a role model for healthy relationship behavior to your teen. Also, consider joining your teen in watching his or her favorite television programs, especially those that involve teens having romantic relationships. Refrain from commenting during the show and take time for discussion when the show is over. Let her or him know your views and values on dating with an optimistic attitude.

Overall, it's important to provide a safe and secure base for open communication with your teen and guide your teen with open-ended questions to help them think about their own expectations and values in relationships. Parents can use their knowledge of both the promise and pitfalls of dating in the teen years to discuss dating openly with their children.

Listening, learning, and living together: it's the science of life. "Family Album" is a co-production of University of Florida IFAS Extension, the Department of Family, Youth and Community Sciences, and of WUFT-FM. If you'd like to learn more, please visit our website at http://www.familyalbumradio.org.

To listen to the radio broadcast:

http://www.radiosource.net/radio_stories/497.mp3

http://www.radiosource.net/radio_stories/497.wav

Reference

Fogarty, K. (2006, July 1). Teens and dating: tips for parents and professionals. Retrieved 19 September 2012: http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/fy851.

Footnotes

1.

This document is FAR1212, one of a series of the Family Youth and Community Sciences Department, Florida Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida. Broadcast as program 497 in August 2006. Published on EDIS July 2012. In the interest of time and/or clarity, the broadcast version of this script may have been modified. Visit the EDIS website at http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu.

2.

Kate Fogarty, assistant professor, and Donna Davis, senior producer, Family Album Radio, Department of Family, Youth and Community Sciences, Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611.

The Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (IFAS) is an Equal Opportunity Institution authorized to provide research, educational information and other services only to individuals and institutions that function with non-discrimination with respect to race, creed, color, religion, age, disability, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, national origin, political opinions or affiliations. For more information on obtaining other extension publications, contact your county Cooperative Extension service.

U.S. Department of Agriculture, Cooperative Extension Service, University of Florida, IFAS, Florida A. & M. University Cooperative Extension Program, and Boards of County Commissioners Cooperating. Nick T. Place, Dean.