An Exploration of the Environmental Setting Mothers and Early Adolescent Youth Prefer to Have Conversations About Daily Stressors

Abstract

Parent-child conversations are impacted by environmental setting. Yet, few studies have considered where mothers and early adolescent youth prefer to have conversations about daily stressors. This study examines where mothers and youth prefer to have conversations about daily stressors, differences in preference based on demographic variables, and why certain environmental settings are preferred. One hundred youth ( M = 11.04, 53% boys) and their mothers participated in semi-structured interviews. Findings showed that youth preferred to communicate in their bedroom, the kitchen, and the living room, whereas mothers preferred the kitchen, their child’s bedroom, and the car. Using thematic analysis, we found that participants preferred communicating in physically and psychologically comfortable environments, private locations that were away from others, and that they relied on bedtime and mealtime routines to engage in regular conversations. Findings suggest that the place mothers and youth converse matters and may meaningfully impact parent-child conversations about daily stressors.