This study was designed to examine associations between family relationship quality and friendship quality in the United States and Japan using surveys of representative samples of individuals ranging in age from 13 to 93 in the United States (n = 1498) and Japan (n = 1641). Associations between family relationships and friendships were stronger and more pervasive in Japan than in the United States. In the United States, there was some evidence that having higher quality family relationships was associated with having higher quality friendships; in Japan, there was similar evidence for consistency in quality across relationships, as well as evidence that qualities lacking in one relationship were sometimes present in another. Gender and age did not moderate the associations between family relationship and friendship quality in either country. These findings extend into adulthood work that has previously focused on family relationships and friendships of children and suggest cultural differences in patterns of association between family relationships and friendships.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
AdamsR. G. (1988). Which comes first: Poor psychological well-being or decreased friendship activity?Activities, Adaptation and Aging, 12, 27–41.
2.
AdamsR. G. (1989). Conceptual and methodological issues in studying friendships of older adults. In AdamsR. G. & BliesznerR. (Eds.), Older adult friendship: Structure and process (pp. 17–41). Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
3.
AdamsR. G., & BliesznerR. (1994). An integrative conceptual framework for friendship research. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 11, 163–184.
4.
AntonucciT. C., & AkiyamaH. (1987). An examination of sex differences in social support among older men and women. Sex Roles, 17, 737–749.
5.
AntonucciT. C., & AkiyamaH. (2000). Convoys of support in old age: A cross-national study. Final report to the National Institute on Aging. Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan.
6.
AntonucciT. C.AkiyamaH., & LansfordJ. E. (1998). The negative effects of close social relations. Family Relations, 47, 379–384.
7.
BaronR. M., & KennyD. A. (1986). The moderator-mediator variable distinction in social psychological research: Conceptual, strategic and statistical considerations. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 51, 1173–1182.
8.
BrethertonI.GolbyB., & ChoE. (1997). Attachment and the transmission of values. In GrusecJ. E. (Ed.), Parenting and children's internalization of values: A handbook of contemporary theory (pp. 103–134). New York: Wiley.
9.
BrownB. B. (1981). A life-span approach to friendship: Age-related dimensions of an ageless relationship. In LopataH. Z. & MainesD. (Eds.), Research in the interweave of social roles: Friendship (pp. 23–50). Greenwich, CT: JAI Press.
10.
CantorM. H. (1979). Neighbors and friends: An overlooked resource in the informal support system. Research on Aging, 1, 434–463.
11.
CarstensenL. L.IsaacowitzD. M., & CharlesS. T. (1999). Taking time seriously: A theory of socioemotional selectivity. American Psychologist, 54, 165–181.
12.
CooperC. R., & CooperR. G. (1992). Links between adolescents' relationships with their parents and peers: Models, evidence, and mechanisms. In ParkeR. D. & LaddG. W. (Eds.), Family-peer relationships: Modes of linkage (pp. 135–158). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
13.
CutronaC. E. (1996). Social support in couples. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
14.
HallE. T. (1989). Understanding cultural differences. Yarmouth, ME: Intercultural Press.
15.
HatchL. R., & BulcroftK. (1992). Contact with friends in later life: Disentangling the effects of gender and marital status. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 54, 222–232.
16.
JohnsonC. L., & TrollL. E. (1994). Constraints and facilitators to friendships in later life. Gerontologist, 34, 79–87.
17.
KoyanoW.HashimotoM.FukawaT., & ShibataH. (1994). The social support system of the Japanese elderly. Journal of Cross-Cultural Gerontology, 9, 323–333.
18.
KrauseN.LiangJ., & GuS. (1998). Financial strain, received support, anticipated support, and depressive symptoms in the People's Republic of China. Psychology and Aging, 13, 58–68.
19.
LynchM., & CicchettiD. (1998). An ecological-transactional analysis of children and contexts: The longitudinal interplay among child maltreatment, community violence, and children's symptomatology. Development and Psychopathology, 10, 235–257.
20.
MarkusH. R., & KitayamaS. (1991). Culture and the self: Implications for cognition, emotion, and motivation. Psychological Review, 98, 224–253.
21.
McGuireS.McHaleS. M., & UpdegraffK. (1996). Children's perceptions of the sibling relationship in middle childhood: Connections within and between family relationships. Personal Relationships, 3, 229–239.
22.
MihalicS. W., & ElliottD. (1997). A social learning theory model of marital violence. Journal of Family Violence, 12, 21–47.
23.
MillsR. S. L., & RubinK. H. (1993). Parental ideas as influences on children's social competence. In DuckS. (Ed.), Learning about relationships (pp. 98–117). Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
24.
OkunA.ParkerJ. G., & LevendoskyA. A. (1994). Distinct and interactive contributions of physical abuse, socioeconomic disadvantage, and negative life events to children's social, cognitive, and affective adjustment. Development and Psychopathology, 6, 77–98.
25.
ParkeR. D.BurksV. M.CarsonJ. L.NevilleB., & BoyumL. A. (1994). Family-peer relationships: A tripartite model. In ParkeR. D. & KellamS. G. (Eds.), Exploring family relationships with other social contexts (pp. 115–145). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
26.
ParkeR. D., & LaddG. W. (1992). Family-peer relationships: Modes of linkage. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
27.
PettitG. S., & MizeJ. (1993). Substance and style: Understanding the ways in which parents teach children about social relationships. In DuckS. (Ed.), Learning about relationships (pp. 118–151). Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
28.
PlathD. W. (1980). Long engagements: Maturity in modern Japan. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.
29.
PragerK. J. (1995). The psychology of intimacy. New York: Guilford Press.
30.
RookK. S. (1997). Positive and negative social exchanges: Weighing their effects in later life. Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences, 52B, S167–S169.
31.
RookK. S., & SchusterT. L. (1996). Compensatory processes in the social networks of older adults. In PierceG. R.SarasonB. R., & SarasonI. G. (Eds.), Handbook of social support and the family (pp. 219–248). New York: Plenum.
32.
RothbaumF.WeiszJ.PottM.MiyakeK., & MorelliG. (2000). Attachment and culture: Security in the United States and Japan. American Psychologist, 55, 1093–1104.
33.
ShermanA. M.de VriesB., & LansfordJ. E. (2000). Friendship in childhood and adulthood: Lessons across the life span. International Journal of Aging and Human Development, 51, 31–51.
34.
StevensonH. W.ChenC., & LeeS. (1993). Mathematics achievement of Chinese, Japanese, and American children: Ten years later. Science, 259, 53–58.
35.
TakahashiK.OharaN.AntonucciT. C., & AkiyamaH. (2002). Commonalities and differences in close relationships among the Americans and Japanese: A comparison by the individualism/collectivism concept. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 26, 453–465.
36.
TakahashiK., & SakamotoA. (2000). Assessing social relationships in adolescents and adults: Constructing and validating the affective relationships scale. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 24, 451–463.
37.
TaylorR. J.ChattersL. M.TuckerB., & LewisE. (1990). Developments in research on Black families: A decade review. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 52, 993–1014.
38.
TietjenA. M. (1989). The ecology of children's social support networks. In BelleD. (Ed.), Children's social networks and social supports (pp. 37–69). New York: Wiley.
39.
TolsonT. F., & WilsonM. J. (1990). The impact of two- and three-generation Black family structure on perceived family climate. Child Development, 61, 416–428.
40.
TriandisH. C. (1989). The self and social behavior in differing cultural contexts. Psychological Review, 96, 506–520.
41.
WeissR. S. (1969). The fund of sociability. Trans-Action/Society, 6, 36–43.
42.
WethingtonE., & KesslerR. C. (1986). Perceived support, received support, and adjustment to stressful life events. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 27, 78–89.
43.
YoungbladeL. M., & BelskyJ. (1992). Parent-child antecedents of 5-year-olds' close friendships: A longitudinal analysis. Developmental Psychology, 28, 700–713.
