Bidirectional Relationship Between Parent–Child Conflict, Bullying, and Adolescent NSSI : The Role of Self‐Compassion and Gender

Abstract

Two seemingly opposite yet equally harmful forms of adolescent behavior, bullying, and non‐suicidal self‐injury (NSSI), are showing an alarming upward trend. Based on Coercion Theory, parent–child conflict is considered a key factor influencing adolescents' maladaptive behaviors, but its bidirectional dynamic relationship and underlying moderating mechanisms remain to be elucidated. This study employed a longitudinal design to examine the bidirectional relationship between parent–child conflict and adolescent bullying/NSSI, as well as the moderating roles of self‐compassion and gender. A total of 6972 adolescents from Anhui, Hainan, and Sichuan, China, completed self‐report questionnaires at two time points. Among these participants, boys accounted for 48.70% and girls for 51.30%, with an average age of 15.70 years (SD = 1.23). Cross‐lagged panel analysis revealed that parental conflict at T1 significantly predicted bullying and NSSI at T2, and vice versa, forming a vicious cycle. Furthermore, self‐compassion moderated the relationship: when adolescents had lower self‐compassion, parental conflict at T1 increased bullying at T2. Gender difference analyses revealed that T1 bullying increased T2 parent–child conflict among girls, while no predictive effect was observed in boys. These findings highlight the importance of self‐compassion and gender in the dynamics of adolescent maladaptive behaviors and parent–child relationships, providing empirical support from a positive psychology perspective for breaking the negative “home‐school” cycle and promoting adolescent mental health.