Evaluating of parents’ marital success and adolescents’ styles of interpersonal functioning

The objective of this study was to analyze family mechanisms in the development of adolescents’ social functioning. It focused on the relation between father and mother. It was assumed that those subjects who assess their parents’ marital quality as low are more hostile in interpersonal situations, while individuals who perceive high marital satisfaction in their parents display a more pro-social behaviour. .
The Marital Satisfaction Scale by M. Braun-Gałkowska (1985) with a modifi cation by A. Gałkowska (1999) and the Interpersonal Style Scale by J.M. Stanik (1994a; 1994b) were used in the study. 344 adolescents were examined. The results of the correlation indicated that there is a connection between the perceived parents’ marital quality and the social functioning of young people in the following styles: cooperative-overconventional, docile-dependent and selfeffacing– masochistic, as well as realism and pessimism in interactions (a weak correlation, but a signifi cant one).
Moreover, the division into groups of respondents as regards their assessment of their parents’ marriage (as low, average and highly successful) and the analysis of variance (ANOVA) allowed to capture the specifi city of the interpersonal functioning of each. Those respondents who perceived their parents as the most satisfi ed with their relationship turned out to be the most prosocial and independent, while those who evaluated their parents’ relationship the lowest turned out to be the least friendly towards others, and the most pessimistic. These results support the hypothesis, but only in some styles the differences were statistically significant (in cooperativeoverconventional and docile-dependent styles, and pessimism scale).

Evaluating of parents’ marital success and adolescents’ styles of interpersonal functioning

The objective of this study was to analyze family mechanisms in the development of adolescents’ social functioning. It focused on the relation between father and mother. It was assumed that those subjects who assess their parents’ marital quality as low are more hostile in interpersonal situations, while individuals who perceive high marital satisfaction in their parents display a more pro-social behaviour. .
The Marital Satisfaction Scale by M. Braun-Gałkowska (1985) with a modifi cation by A. Gałkowska (1999) and the Interpersonal Style Scale by J.M. Stanik (1994a; 1994b) were used in the study. 344 adolescents were examined. The results of the correlation indicated that there is a connection between the perceived parents’ marital quality and the social functioning of young people in the following styles: cooperative-overconventional, docile-dependent and selfeffacing– masochistic, as well as realism and pessimism in interactions (a weak correlation, but a significant one).
Moreover, the division into groups of respondents as regards their assessment of their parents’ marriage (as low, average and highly successful) and the analysis of variance (ANOVA) allowed to capture the specifi city of the interpersonal functioning of each. Those respondents who perceived their parents as the most satisfi ed with their relationship turned out to be the most prosocial and independent, while those who evaluated their parents’ relationship the lowest turned out to be the least friendly towards others, and the most pessimistic. These results support the hypothesis, but only in some styles the differences were statistically signifi cant (in cooperativeoverconventional and docile-dependent styles, and pessimism scale).