Parent-Adolescent Conversations About COVID-19 Influence Adolescents’ Empathic Concern and Adherence to Health Protective Behaviors

Peplak, Joanna; Klemfuss, J. Zoe; Yates, Tuppett M.

PURPOSE: This longitudinal investigation assessed how the frequency of parent-adolescent conversations about COVID-19, moderated by adolescents’ stress, influenced adolescents’ empathic concern and adherence to health protective behaviors (HPBs) throughout the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: Participants were 181 adolescents (M(age) = 15.23 years; 51% female; 47% Latinx) and their parents. Frequency of parent-adolescent conversations about COVID-19 (i.e., pandemic-related symptoms, health behaviors, and social effects), empathic concern toward vulnerable others, and adolescent HPBs were assessed via surveys in the first months of the pandemic, and empathic concern and HPBs were assessed again nine months later. RESULTS: Results revealed that more frequent parent-adolescent conversations early in the pandemic predicted increased adherence to HPBs throughout the pandemic when adolescents reported low stress (direct effect), but conversation frequency predicted decreased adherence to HPBs via reduced empathic concern when adolescents reported high stress (indirect effect). CONCLUSIONS: Parents and other socialization agents, such as teachers, should be sensitive to adolescents’ stress prior to engaging them in frequent conversations about the pandemic to mitigate the potential negative impact these conversations may have on adolescents’ empathic concern and adherence to HPBs. Decreasing adolescents’ stress may be an initial step in promoting effective message transference. Collective action (including wearing masks and receiving the vaccination) remains critical to overcome COVID-19. The current contribution to understanding processes underlying adolescents’ adherence to recommended HPBs is critical pandemic fatigue and stress continue to rise.