Parental Monitoring & Communication
Schools and local education agencies can share resources with parents and families to promote these parenting practices.
Parental monitoring refers to parental knowledge of adolescents’ companions, whereabouts, and activities and enforcement of rules, particularly about friends and dating.
Parent-adolescent communication should be ongoing and substantial, open and honest, equally initiated by both parents and adolescents, acknowledging of individual attitudes and values, reflective of an authoritative parenting style (i.e., provide emotional support while also enforcing high standards), and mutually satisfying.
Schools and local education agencies can share resources with parents and families to promote these parenting practices.
Resources about these topics should address both knowledge and skills. Specifically, information should include:
- key definitions and explanations of the concept(s).
- a brief summary of its benefits as well as challenges to implementation and potential solutions.
- key action steps for parents to strengthen the practice.
Additional resources on parental monitoring and communication can be found below.
Resources
- Dittus PJ, Michael SL, Becasen JS, Gloppen KM, McCarthy K, Guilamo-Ramos V. Parental monitoring and its associations with adolescent sexual risk behavior: a meta-analysisexternal icon. Pediatrics. 2015;136(6):e1587-1599.
- Widman L, Choukas-Bradley S, Noar SM, Nesi J, Garrett K. Parent-adolescent sexual communication and adolescent safer sex behavior: a meta-analysisexternal icon. JAMA Pediatr. 2016;170(1):52-61.
- Jaccard J, Guilamo-Ramos V, Bouris A, Dittus PJ. A three-process system of parental monitoring and supervision. In: Guilamo-Ramos V, Jaccard J, Dittus PJ, eds. Parental Monitoring of Adolescents. New York, NY: Columbia University Press; 2010.
- Baurmind D. Parenting styles and adolescent development. In: Brooks-Gunn J, Lerner R, Peterson AC, eds. The Encyclopedia of Adolescence. New York, NY: Garland; 1991.