Intergenerational Relationships across the Life Course: Links with Adolescent Well-Being

Abstract

Grounded in the life course perspective, the author used data from three generations of the Youth Development Study (YDS) to conduct two studies on intergenerational relationships between parents and children. Using growth mixture modeling, Study 1 identified prospective patterns of perceived closeness with fathers (n = 913) and mothers (n = 966) from adolescence into adulthood over 24 years in the first generation (G1 -- G2). Analyses identified a continuous, slightly increasing pattern of perceived closeness with fathers. Three quadratic, latent class patterns of perceived closeness with mothers fit the data best: high closeness over time, average but decreased closeness in adulthood, and low but increased closeness in adulthood. Demographic and family correlates are discussed. In a subset of second generation, parent-adolescent dyads (n =262), Study 2 examined the relationship between G1- G2 patterns of perceived closeness and G3 well-being and perceived closeness with parents in adolescence. The mean trajectory of G2 perceived closeness with grandfathers did not predict perceived closeness with parents, depression, or well-being in G3 adolescents; nor did patterns of G2 perceived closeness with grandmothers differentiate levels of depressed mood, self-esteem, or closeness with mother in G3 adolescents. A marginal difference in G3 closeness with fathers was found by G2 patterns of closeness with mothers, such that those in families with G2 low but increased closeness reported lower closeness with fathers compared to those in families with high G2 closeness over time.