Family Serial Arguments: Beliefs about the Argument and Perceived Stress from the Argument

Abstract

One hundred seventeen college students recalled a serial argument with a family member. The type of serial argument (whether a public- or personal-issue argument, Johnson, 2002) and level of argumentativeness predicted beliefs about family serial arguments. Whether the serial argument was believed to be ego-involving, enjoyable, or related to dysfunctional outcomes predicted the level of personal harm (stress and stress-related symptoms) related to the argument.