University of FloridaSolutions for Your Life

Download PDF
Publication #FAR1218

 

How Family Environment Influences Teens1

Donna Davis2

Figure 1. 
[Click thumbnail to enlarge.]

After years of hearing how much I should dread the teen years, what a wonderful surprise it was when I found that living with teenagers could actually be not just a pleasant experience, but a fulfilling and wonderful adventure.

According to a recent study, there are plenty of parents who enjoy their teens. In a national sample of mothers and fathers, more than three-quarters of parents reported having a very close relationship with their adolescent children. Their teens seem to agree, as an overwhelming majority of teens reported being able to talk to their mothers about things that really bother them. The teens studied found it more difficult to talk to their fathers, yet about 50% were still able to do so (Aufseeser, Jekielek, & Brown, 2006).

According to the research, family structure also makes a difference. Teens with two biological parents living at home were among the largest group reporting very close relationships with their parents, at 82%. The numbers drop, but remain healthy, with 78% reporting very close relationships with their single mothers, and 72% are close to one biological parent and one stepparent. Other family factors influence their adolescent well-being, including parental health behaviors. For example, parents who don't smoke are less likely to have teens that smoke, and parents who exercise are more likely to have active teens as well (Aufseeser, Jekielek, & Brown, 2006). This research serves as an additional reminder that parents and families are important to the healthy development of teens.

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/524.mp3

http://www.radiosource.net/radio_stories/524.wav

Reference

Aufseeser, D., Jekielek, S., and Brown, B. (2006). The family environment and adolescent well-being: exposure to positive and negative family influences. Washington, D.C.: Child Trends; and San Francisco, CA: National Adolescent Health Information Center, University of California, San Francisco.

Footnotes

1.

This document is FAR1218, 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 524. Published on EDIS March 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.

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.