Parent-youth concordance regarding violence exposure: Relationship to youth psychosocial functioning

Purpose: To examine the relationship between parent youth concordance with regard to youth exposures to violence and youth psychosocial functioning, i ncluding perpetration of violence, distress symptomatology, and social skil lfulness. Methods: A battery of self-report questionnaires were completed by 333 pare nt-youth dyads residing in urban public housing developments. Concordance s tatus (<50%, 50-80%, and >80%) was based on dyad agreement regarding youth' s violence exposures. The relationship between concordance and psychosocial factors was assessed by a series of analyses of covariance tests. Results: Parents underestimated the extent to which their children were vic tims of or witnesses to violence and suffered from distress symptoms. Low c oncordance status was associated with youth perpetration of violence and di stress symptomatology, as well as lower self-esteem and problem-solving ski llfulness. Youth in the low concordance group characterized their families as exhibiting less involvement, open communication, and parental monitoring . Conclusions: Concordance between parents and youth is associated with youth psychosocial competence and strong family functioning. Findings underscore the need to incorporate a parent component in primary and set secondary vi olence-prevention programs. Further examination of the processes which cont ribute to concordance may enhance our ability to prevent youth engagement i n violence and its untoward psychosocial sequelae. (C) Society for Adolesce nt Medicine, 1999.