The following is a summary of “Parenting Practices and Adolescent Internalizing Symptoms in the United States, 1991–2019,” published in the February 2023 issue of Adolescent Health by Kreski et al.

The prevalence of adolescents experiencing internalizing symptoms has been rising in the United States. It has been speculated that shifts in parenting styles, such as increased monitoring and open communication, are to blame for these increases. Their research aims to estimate long-term changes in parenting styles and shed light on whether or not these changes could account for the rise in the prevalence of psychological distress in children. Using data from the Monitoring the Future survey conducted between 1991 and 2019 (N = 933,645), researchers conducted ordinal regressions to analyze changes in 5 parental practices (i.e., knowledge [3 combined indicators], monitoring [4 combined indicators], communication, weekend curfew, and social permission). 

Using survey-weighted logistic regressions that controlled for gender, race/ethnicity, grade, and parental education, they looked for links between parental practices and indications of being in the top decile of depressive affect, poor self-esteem, and self-derogation. Parental knowledge has increased, particularly in regards to parents knowing where an adolescent is after school (mean a rise from 1999 to 2019: 4.34 to 4.61) and parents knowing an adolescent’s whereabouts (4.16-4.49) and company at night (4.26–4.51). 

For example, the adjusted odds ratio for a high depressive affect based on a 1-unit increase in parental knowledge was 0.89 (95% CI: 0.88–0.90), suggesting that more of each practice is associated with fewer internalizing symptoms. Both the decade and the internalizing outcomes showed consistent patterns. Long-term variables like parental knowledge, monitoring, and other activities safeguard adolescents’ mental health. No discernible shift occurring in these areas could account for the observed rise in cases of internalizing disorders. While these parenting habits are associated with adolescents’ internalizing symptoms, future therapies should provide resources to support them.

Source: sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1054139X22006528