This study investigates the extent to which parents’ and
adolescent’s reports of parental child-rearing behaviour are in agreement
with each other. The aim of this study is twofold. The first aim is to verify
whether familial congruence (congruence between family members) about child rearing
exists. The second aim is to verify whether the level of congruence varies with the
stage of the adolescent (early and middle) and gender of parent or child. The sample
consists of 788 families with a child between the ages of 9 and 16 years. Congruence
scores were computed on diverse aspects of child rearing: material rewarding,
expression of affection, conformity, autonomy, ignoring, and punishment. The results
show that familial congruence exists, not only between father and mother but also
between parents and their children. A second result is that congruence between
parents and their children increases from early to middle adolescence indicating
that children become more competent interpreting their parents’ behaviour.
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