Parent–Child (In)congruence in Reports of Parenting and Adolescent Depression: Role of Gender and Developmental Stage

Abstract

This study aimed to investigate how parent–adolescent (in)congruence in perceiving parental psychological control (PC) and autonomy support (AS) is related to adolescent depression, and the moderating effects of adolescent gender and developmental stages. Adolescents generally hold more negative views of parenting than their parents do. However, little is known about the association between (in)congruence in PC and AS and adolescent depression, and whether this association varies across gender and developmental stage. Polynomial regression with response surface analysis (RSA) was conducted in this study. Participants were 2356 adolescents (M age  = 14.06, SD = 1.63; 54.80% girls) and their parents in the Chinese mainland. Our findings revealed that congruent perceptions of high PC and AS were linked to higher and lower depression, respectively. Parent–adolescent incongruence in terms of more negative perceptions among adolescents (i.e., higher PC and lower AS) than parents was associated with higher depression. While adolescent gender did not moderate these associations, adolescent grade did in the mother–child dyads. Adolescent depression was associated with parent–adolescent discrepancies in PC and AS, with developmental stage having a moderating effect on this association. These findings underscore the meaningful implications of parent–child discrepancy in adolescent development. Our findings are also expected to guide the development of education programs and family services that promote parent–adolescent communication, ensuring adolescents' optimal development and the well‐being of the entire family.