Adolescents' perceptions of privacy invasion in reaction to parental solicitation and control

Following suggestions from prior research, this 2-wave longitudinal study examined whether parental solicitation and control influenced adolescents’ later perceptions of privacy invasion. Data from 307 Dutch adolescents were tested with structural equation modeling (SEM). Differences in adolescents’ invasion perceptions were examined in terms of gender and the quality of interactions with parents. Parental control influenced later invasion perceptions among adolescents reporting higher quality interactions with parents, particularly among males. Parental solicitation also predicted perceptions of invasion. Results are discussed in terms of Kerr and Stattin’s (2000) reinterpretation of parental monitoring, gender differences, the dialectical tension between openness and closedness in family relationships, and implications for adolescent-parent privacy negotiations.