Parental health and adolescent behavioral adjustment

This study compared the frequency of problem behaviors in adolescents of parents with chronic health conditions and adolescents of healthy parents. Eighty-one families of 6th, 7th, and 8th graders in rural Florida completed a battery of questionnaires including a health history form, the SF-36 Health Survey, the Child Behavior Checklist, and the Youth Self-Report. The presence of a chronic health condition in the father was strongly related to more behavior problems in adolescents. The presence of a chronic health condition in the mother was not significantly associated with adolescent behavior problems. However, lower health-related quality of life in both mothers and fathers was associated with more behavior problems. Contrary to past findings, no significant interactions between the sex of the child and the health status of the same-sex parent were found. Parental health status should be considered in the evaluation and treatment of adolescent behavior problems. In addition, further research examining the relation between fathers' health status and childhood adjustment is needed.