Adolescents' Submission and Conflict Behaviors with Mothers Predicts Current and Future Internalizing Problems

Abstract

We tested hypotheses that adolescent behaviors indicating difficulty with individuation from mothers predict current internalizing and increases in internalizing problems a year later. Seventy-eight rural, primarily White working-class adolescents used video recall methods to rate their behaviors with their mothers during a conflict resolution task. Multiple regression and sequential analyses revealed that girls, particularly those with prior internalizing problems, evidenced increased internalizing problems if they had high levels of Conflict and Submission (“agitated submission”). Boys' internalizing problems increased as their Submission, but not Conflict (“disengaged submission”), rose. These behavior patterns may represent gendered vulnerabilities in mastering individuation.