Utilising data from a Swedish longitudinal project, relationships with parents and
friends were studied at ages 13 through 18, and with partners at age 37. The
participants (N = 131, 56 females, 75 males) were either married or cohabiting in
long-term relationships in midlife. In support of previous studies, which rely
mostly on retrospective ” ndings, we found in this longitudinal study that
adolescents with affectionate and trustful relationships with their parents reported
greater satisfaction with their partner relationships in midlife. This was
specifically true for father-son relationships. Parent-parent relations in
adolescence were not linked with the quality of adult partner relationships. Boys
who were shy in relation to friends were more dissatisfied with their partner
relationships, and boys who regarded cross-gender relationships as less important in
adolescence were more satis” ed with their adult partner relationships.
Girls who were more worried about cross-gender relationships in adolescence were
less satis” ed with their partners. On the whole, adolescent
boys’ relationships with fathers had the clearest link with later adult
partner relationships.
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