Family Communication Patterns and Conflict Styles in Chinese Parent-Child Relationships

Abstract

This study investigated Chinese family communication patterns, their effects on children's conflict styles, and the children's perceptions of parent-child relationship satisfaction. The study found that Chinese family communication patterns are more conversation-oriented than conformity-oriented, and the collaborating and accommodating styles are the children's most preferred and the competing style the least preferred. The children from conversation-oriented families are most likely to use the collaborating style but unlikely to use the avoiding style, whereas the children from conformity-oriented families are most likely to use the competing style but unlikely to use the collaborating style. The finding also indicated that children are more satisfied with the conversation orientation than with the conformity orientation and with the collaborating, compromising, and accommodating styles than with competing and avoiding styles in parent-child relationships.

Keywords:

• China
• Conflict Styles
• Family Communication Patterns
• Parent-Child Relationships
• Relationship Satisfaction

Notes

∗p < .01

^† p < .05, two-tailed.

Note: Row means with different superscripts differ significantly at p < .05.

An earlier version of this paper was presented at the 2006 National Communication Association Convention, San Antonio, TX.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Qin Zhang

Qin Zhang (PhD, University of New Mexico, 2005) is an assistant professor in the Department of Communication at Fairfield University, Fairfield, CT 06824, USA.