In early adolescence individuals gradually become alienated from their parents and begin to integrate into peer groups, and friendship becomes their most important source of emotional support (Erdley et al., 2002). Friendship refers to the close, reciprocal binary relationship that occurs between two individuals. It is a two-way structure that facilitates a positive feeling for both individuals involved (Bukowski & Hoza, 1989). Youth friendships are mainly based on intimacy; reciprocity; and the value of meaning, expectations, promises, and emotions (e.g., affection, attachment, conflict) produced by both parties in the process of continuous interaction.

Friendship quality is an important indicator in individual friendships, reflecting the support provided by friends, the degree of companionship, and any conflicts (Parker & Asher, 1993). A good friendship not only provides external social support (e.g., companionship) to adolescents but can also help enhance their internal self-worth (e.g., self-identity). Research has found that adolescents with high friendship quality are more secure and less anxious (Zhong et al., 2017), have higher self-esteem (Maunder & Monks, 2019), hold higher psychological capital (X. Z. Chen et al., 2017), display more positive eating behaviors (X. M. Chen et al., 2020), show better social adaptability (Mikami & Normand, 2015), have higher self-identity, and actively face failures and frustrations (Troop-Gordon et al., 2015). In contrast, adolescents with low friendship quality are prone to experiencing loneliness, depression, and anxiety (Rudolph et al., 2014), and demonstrate problem behaviors, such as dropping out of school and being bullied (Shin, 2000).

The continuity view of developmental construction holds that individual interpersonal relationships are the continuation of parent–child relationships (Bowlby, 1989). Good parent–child relationships affect the construction of other positive relationships, such as friendship with peers (Tian et al., 2014), and help adolescents form trust in their intimate relationships with others (Carlson et al., 2004). Communication has a direct influence on parent–child relationships: Good parent–child communication can strengthen the parent–child connection (Davidson & Cardemil, 2009). Previous studies have shown that adolescents’ perceptions of the parent–child relationship are related to friendship quality (Diaconu-Gherasim & Duca, 2018). Adolescents with good parent–child relationships tend to imitate their parents’ social style, which can help them develop interpersonal skills (Liu et al., 2020) and build good peer friendships. Tian et al. (2014) conducted a study on the influence of parental support and friendship quality on loneliness and depression, and found that greater parental support was associated with better friendship quality and more positive emotional adaptation among adolescents. Given this background, we put forward the following hypothesis:
Hypothesis 1: The parent–child communication of adolescents in seventh grade will predict their friendship quality in eighth grade.

However, some studies have shown that the association between parent–child relationships and peer relationships in adolescence is not a one-way predictive relationship. For example, Rodriguez et al. (2014) showed that there was a two-way dynamic process of interaction: The better the parent–child relationship in early adolescence, the higher was the friendship quality in the child’s mid-teens, and the better the friendship quality in the mid-teens, the better was the parent–child relationship in late adolescence. Allen et al. (2018) pointed out that friendship quality can predict changes in adolescents’ sense of attachment security. Because secure attachment is closely related to a good parent–child relationship, friendship quality may have an impact on the parent–child connection (Liu et al., 2020). To sum up, although there have been studies of the influence of friendship quality on parent–child relationships, no research has been conducted on the association between early adolescent friendship quality and parent–child communication. Therefore, we proposed the following hypothesis:
Hypothesis 2: The friendship quality of adolescents in seventh grade will predict parent–child communication in eighth grade.

As individuals enter puberty their thinking skills develop rapidly and their self-awareness increases. They demand more autonomy and independence, and experience a gradual decrease in perceived parental support (W. Zhang et al., 2012), communication with parents, and the scope of such communication (Y. L. Zhang, 2020). Therefore, the parent–child communication of adolescents may change over time. Changes in friendship mainly occur in early adolescence, and studies have shown that seventh, compared to eighth, graders score higher on friendship recognition, care, help, trust, and respect (Wang et al., 2006). Therefore, we presented the following hypothesis:
Hypothesis 3: Parent–child communication and friendship quality in early adolescence will change over time so that seventh-grade adolescents have greater levels of both than do eighth-grade adolescents.

There are obvious gender differences in parent–child communication and friendship quality among adolescents. Boys and girls tend to differ in their communication styles: Boys are more focused on problem solving whereas girls are more focused on emotional communication (Newman et al., 2008). There are also gender differences in parent–child communication, such that this communication has been shown to have a greater impact on boys than on girls (Tian et al., 2014). With regard to friendships in early adolescence, the friendship quality of girls has been found to be higher than that of boys (Tian et al., 2014). Therefore, we proposed the following hypothesis:
Hypothesis 4: There will be gender differences in parent–child communication and friendship quality among adolescents, such that girls’ friendship quality will be higher than that of boys, and boys’ parent–child communication will be better than that of girls.

In summary, we adopted a 10-month follow-up research design to investigate (a) the cross-lagged effect between parent–child communication and friendship quality in early adolescence, aiming to reveal the possible two-way predictive relationship between parent–child relationships and peer relationships among adolescents, and (b) the stability of parent–child communication and adolescents’ friendship quality, and of gender differences in early adolescents. The overarching goal of the analysis was to provide insight into and ideas for promoting the development of adolescents’ interpersonal relationships.

Method

Participants and Procedure

Using a cluster sampling method, we recruited seventh-grade students from eight junior high schools in two cities in Hunan Province. Data collection was carried out collectively in the classroom, using paper-and-pencil forms. The first measurement (Time 1) took place in December 2018, and 1,134 questionnaires were distributed and recovered. The second measurement (Time 2) took place in October 2019, and 1,066 questionnaires were distributed and recovered. The data from the two measurements were integrated. Exclusion criteria were students who did not attend the second test, those who responded with the answer to all items, and those who submitted invalid questionnaires. The final sample comprised 842 participants (439 boys, 52.1%; 403 girls, 47.9%) with an average age of 12.19 ± 0.48 years at Time 1. The study was reviewed and approved by the institutional review board of the Institute of Psychology, Hunan Normal University. All participants’ guardians provided written informed consent in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki.

Measures

Parent-Adolescent Communication Scale
The 20-item Parent-Adolescent Communication Scale was compiled by Barnes and Olson (1985) and has two subscales for father–child and mother–child communication, respectively. Each 10-item subscale includes the dimensions of communication openness (five items) and problematic communication (five items). A sample item is “I can talk about my faith with my father (mother) without restraint.” Responses are rated using a 5-point Likert-type scale (1 = completely disagree, 5 = completely agree) and Items 2, 4, 5, 10, 11, 12, 15, 18, 19, and 20 are reverse-scored. The higher the score, the better is the parent–child communication. Cronbach’s alphas at Times 1 and 2 were .76 and .77.

Friendship Quality Questionnaire
The Friendship Quality Questionnaire was compiled by Parker and Asher (1993), and we used the 18-item short form, which was revised and translated into Chinese by Zhou et al. (2005). The 18-item scale is used to evaluate the quality of friendship with best friends, and a sample item is “At any time, as long as there is a chance to do so, we will always be together.” The scale includes six dimensions: affirmation, concern, intimacy, communication, companionship, and entertainment. Responses are rated on a 5-point Likert scale (1 = completely inconsistent, 5 = completely in conformity), with the items for conflict and betrayal being reverse-scored. The higher the final score, the higher is the friendship quality. Cronbach’s alphas at Times 1 and 2 were .88 and .91.

Data Analysis

We used SPSS 23.0 and Mplus 8.0 to process the data. First, a repeated-measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used to analyze the stability of early parent–child communication, friendship quality, and gender differences in adolescents. A correlation analysis of parent–child communication and the friendship quality of adolescents was performed at two times points. Next, Mplus 8.0 was used to conduct a cross-lagged analysis of parent–child communication and friendship quality in early adolescence to explore the two-way relationship between these variables.

Results

Common Method Bias Test

Both the Parent-Adolescent Communication Scale and the Friendship Quality Questionnaire are self-report scales that were answered by the students themselves, which may have led to common method bias influencing the results. Therefore, we conducted Harman’s single-factor test. The unrotated exploratory factor analysis extracted 17 factors, and the first factor explained 20.78% of the variance. This is less than the critical value of 40%; thus, common method bias was not a serious concern in this study.

The Stability of Parent–Child Communication, Friendship Quality, and Gender Differences in Early Adolescence

Father–child communication and mother–child communication were used as the dependent variables, test time (Times 1 and 2) was used as a within-subjects factor, and gender (boys and girls) was used as a between-subjects factor to perform a 2 × 2 repeated-measures ANOVA. The results (see Table 1) show that the main time effects of father–child communication and mother–child communication were both significant, F_{Father–child}(1, 840) = 40.72, p < .001; F_{Mother–child}(1, 840) = 360.70, p < .001. Father–child and mother–child communication scores were higher at Time 1 than at Time 2, and the main effects of gender were significant, F_{Father–child}(1, 840) = 5.58, p < .05; F_{Mother–child}(1, 840) = 4.90, p < .05, such that father–child and mother–child communication scores for boys were higher than those for girls. The interaction between test time and gender was not significant, F_{Father–child}(1, 840) = 1.07, p > .05; F_{Mother–child}(1, 840) = 0.34, p > .05.

Using friendship quality as a dependent variable, test time (Times 1 and 2) as a within-subjects factor, and gender (boys and girls) as a between-subjects factor, we performed a 2 × 2 repeated-measures ANOVA. Results show that the main effect of test time was significant, F(1, 840) = 130.47, p < .001, and that friendship quality scores at Time 1 were higher than those at Time 2. The main effect of gender was significant, F(1, 840) = 10.66, p < .01, and the friendship quality scores of girls were higher than those of boys. The interaction between test time and gender was not significant, F(1, 840) = 0.39, p > .05.

Correlation Analysis

As shown in Table 2, results of a correlation analysis between early adolescent parent communication and friendship quality show that father–child communication and mother–child communication as measured at Times 1 and 2 were significantly related to friendship quality.

Cross-Lagged Analysis of Early Adolescents’ Parent–Child Communication and Friendship Quality

As shown in Figure 1, this study used Mplus 8.0 to conduct a cross-lagged analysis of parent–child communication and friendship quality among early adolescents. First, we established a model for parent–child (father–child and mother–child) communication and friendship quality. The model showed a good fit to the data, comparative fit index = 1.00, Tucker–Lewis index = 1.00, root mean square error of approximation = .00. The autoregressive paths of father–child communication, mother–child communication, and friendship quality in early adolescence from Time 1 to Time 2 were significant (β = .47, p < .001; β = .50, p < .001; β = .35, p < .001). Time 1 father–child and mother–child communication significantly and positively predicted adolescents’ Time 2 friendship quality (β = .07, p < .05; β = .09, p < .01); that is, the higher the level of father–child communication or mother–child communication at Time 1, the higher was the friendship quality at Time 2. However, friendship quality at Time 1 did not significantly predict father–child and mother–child communication at Time 2 (β = .04, p > .05; β = .03, p > .05).

Discussion

We conducted a two-stage tracking study with an interval of 10 months to explore the two-way relationship between parent–child communication and friendship quality. We assumed that parent–child communication would predict early adolescent friendship quality, and vice versa. The results partially supported our hypotheses, in that parent–child communication and friendship quality scores were higher at Time 1 compared to Time 2. Further, parent–child communication scores were higher for boys than for girls, and the friendship quality scores of girls were higher than those of boys. Thus, parent–child communication predicted early adolescents’ friendship quality, but friendship quality did not predict parent–child communication.

The Stability of Parent–Child Communication, Friendship Quality, and Gender Differences in Early Adolescence

An analysis of the stability of parent–child communication and friendship quality in early adolescence shows that these characteristics changed over time, such that parent–child communication was better for children in seventh grade compared to eighth grade. This is consistent with previous research, for example, Y. L. Zhang (2020) found that, over time, the scope of communication between adolescents and their parents gradually shrank, and that friendship quality among children in seventh grade was higher than that among children in eighth grade. This contrasts with Buhrmester’s (1990) results, a difference that may be explained by the fact that Time 1 in our study was in December, when students had just entered junior high school, and friendships from the elementary school level were still influential. As adolescents enter puberty, their inner world is rich. Emotional instability and increased academic tasks may be reasons for the decline in the quality of friendships with increasing age.

An analysis of gender differences shows that the friendship quality of girls was significantly higher than that of boys, which is consistent with previous study results (Tian et al., 2014). Girls are more sensitive to friendship quality (Wentzel & Caldwell, 1997) and experience more peer support (Bokhorst et al., 2010) compared with boys; thus, their friendship quality is higher than that of boys. Parent–child communication was found to be significantly better among boys than among girls, which is also consistent with previous studies (Tian et al., 2014). Noller and Callan (1990) found that boys were more satisfied with parent–child communication than were girls. Further, the higher the satisfaction with parent–child communication, the easier it was to communicate with parents, thereby improving the level of parent–child communication. Frey and Röthlisberger (1996) found that girls’ perception of peer support was greater than their perception of parental support, whereas boys held the opposite perception. This has implications for parent–child communication, which we found was higher for boys than for girls.

The Relationship Between Parent–Child Communication and Friendship Quality in Early Adolescence

We found that both father–child and mother–child communication significantly affected early adolescent friendship quality, which is consistent with previous findings (Fuligni & Eccles, 1993; Peng & Dai, 2019). According to the continuity view of developmental construction, parent–child relationships have an important influence on and are a template for the formation of peer relationships in adolescence (Bowlby, 1989). Communication methods and skills learned by teenagers in the process of communicating with their parents are transferred to peers. Healthy parent–child communication means that teenagers learn how to communicate smoothly with others, have fun in interpersonal communication, and establish relationships with peers. Trust is an important condition for adolescents to establish high-quality friendships.

However, our findings differ from those of some previous studies. For example, Kim and Sim (2000) found that only father–child communication affected friendship quality. The difference from our results may stem from cultural differences, as their study was based in South Korea, where families typically follow an authoritative parenting style, whereas the typical parenting style in Chinese families falls somewhere between authoritative and democratic. In China, fathers generally assume authority in the family and serve as a role model for adolescents (W. Zhang et al., 2006). Therefore, fathers play an essential role in adolescent development and communication. When the father has enough power of persuasion, father–child communication can significantly affect adolescents’ friendship quality. As the main caregivers of the family, mothers pay more attention to adolescents than do fathers. The frequency, time, and initiation of communication with adolescents have been found to be higher in mothers than in fathers (Lei et al., 2002). Therefore, mother–child communication can also significantly affect the quality of adolescents’ friendships. Moreover, with the development of modern society, parents’ attention and communication with their children has been increasingly emphasized; therefore, father–child and mother–child communication can significantly affect the friendship quality of early adolescents.

However, we found that friendship quality had no significant impact on either father–child or mother–child communication. This indicates that early adolescent parent–child communication and friendship quality are one-way rather than two-way causal relationships, which is inconsistent with previous research results. For example, Rodriguez et al. (2014) found that there was a two-way relationship between parent–child relationships and peer relationships, such that parent–child relationships in early adolescence affected friendship quality in middle adolescence, and friendship quality in middle adolescence affected parent–child relationships in late adolescence. The reason for the inconsistent results between our study and the work of Rodriguez et al. may be attributable to the sample characteristics. Rodriguez et al. studied adolescents of all ages and explored the mutual influence of parent–child relationships and friendship quality in the early, middle, and late stages of adolescence. In contrast, this study focused only on early adolescents and explored the interaction between parent–child communication and friendship quality in that stage of life. Our results indicate that the parent–child communication model formed in the family environment is an important prototype for adolescent friendships. This verifies the continuity point of view in development construction.

Limitations and Future Research Directions

We conducted a cross-lagged analysis at two time points to measure parent–child communication and friendship quality in early adolescents, thereby avoiding the deficiencies of horizontal research. This approach is conducive to the discovery of causality; however, it was not possible to further explore the steady changes in parent–child communication and friendship quality. Future research could measure more time points to explore the relationship between these variables at a deeper level. Additionally, gender was the only variable we controlled for when conducting the cross-lagged analysis. Therefore, future research could further explore other factors that affect parent–child communication and friendship quality (e.g., family financial status, parents’ marital status), to improve the research model and promote the healthy development of adolescents.

Conclusion

This study explored the two-way relationship between parent–child communication and friendship quality in early adolescents, as well as the stability of both these variables and of gender differences. The main results were as follows: (a) Parent–child communication predicted early adolescents’ friendship quality, but friendship quality did not predict early adolescents’ parent–child communication; (b) parent–child communication and friendship quality among early adolescents developed and changed over time; and (c) there were gender differences in parent–child communication and friendship quality in early adolescence, whereby girls’ friendship quality was higher than that of boys, and boys’ parent–child communication was better than that of girls.

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https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.12840

Barnes, H. L., & Olson, D. H. (1985). Parent-adolescent communication and the circumplex model. Child Development, 56(2), 438–447.
https://doi.org/10.2307/1129732

Bokhorst, C. L., Sumter, S. R., & Westenberg, P. M. (2010). Social support from parents, friends, classmates, and teachers in children and adolescents aged 9 to 18 years: Who is perceived as most supportive? Social Development, 19(2), 417–426.
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9507.2009.00540.x

Bowlby, J. (1989). Secure attachment. Basic Books.

Buhrmester, D. (1990). Intimacy of friendship, interpersonal competence, and adjustment during preadolescence and adolescence. Child Development, 61(4), 1101–1111.
https://doi.org/10.2307/1130878

Bukowski, W. M., & Hoza, B. (1989). Popularity and friendship: Issues in theory, measurement, and outcome. In T. J. Berndt & G. W. Ladd (Eds.), Peer relationships in child development (pp. 15–45). John Wiley & Sons.

Carlson, E. A., Sroufe, L. A., & Egeland, B. (2004). The construction of experience: A longitudinal study of representation and behavior. Child Development, 75(1), 66–83.
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8624.2004.00654.x

Chen, X. M., Luo, Y. J., & Chen, H. (2020). Friendship quality and adolescents’ intuitive eating: A serial mediation model and the gender difference. Acta Psychologica Sinica, 52(4), 485–496.
https://doi.org/10.3724/SP.J.1041.2020.00485

Chen, X. Z., Lai, W. P., Ma, H. F., Chen, J., & Shan, Y. T. (2017). The relation between parent-adolescent relationship and adolescent psychological capital: The mediating effect of friendship quality and the moderating effect of school bonding [In Chinese]. Psychological Development and Education, 33(5), 544–553.
https://doi.org/10.16187/j.cnki.issn1001-4918.2017.05.04

Davidson, T. M., & Cardemil, E. V. (2009). Parent-child communication and parental involvement in Latino adolescents. The Journal of Early Adolescence, 29(1), 99–121.
https://doi.org/10.1177/0272431608324480

Diaconu-Gherasim, L. R., & Duca, D. S. (2018). Parent–adolescent attachment and interpersonal relationships in sports teams: Exploring the gender differences. Gender Issues, 35, 21–37.
https://doi.org/10.1007/s12147-017-9190-0

Erdley, C. A., Nangle, D. W., Newman, J. E., & Carpenter, E. M. (2002). Children’s friendship experiences and psychological adjustment: Theory and research. New Directions for Child and Adolescent Development, 2001(91), 5–24.
https://doi.org/10.1002/cd.3

Frey, C. U., & Röthlisberger, C. (1996). Social support in healthy adolescents. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 25, 17–31.
https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01537378

Fuligni, A. J., & Eccles, J. S. (1993). Perceived parent-child relationships and early adolescents’ orientation toward peers. Developmental Psychology, 29(4), 622–632.
https://doi.org/10.1037/0012-1649.29.4.622

Kim, Y. M., & Sim, H. O. (2000). Influences of communication with parents, relations with teachers and intramural/extramural activities on peer relationships [In Korean]. Korean Journal of Child Studies, 21(4), 159–175. https://bit.ly/3jiQnN2

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Weiguo Qu and Kexin Li are co-first authors.
The authors thank Editage (www.editage.cn) for English language editing.

Yulong Wang, School of Educational Science, Cognition and Human Behavior Key Laboratory of Hunan Province, Hunan Normal University, 36 Lushan Road, Yuelu District, Changsha City, Hunan Province, People’s Republic of China, 410081. Email: [email protected]