Do Ask, Do Tell? Observations of Mothers' Solicitation and Adolescents' Disclosure

This investigation used sequential analysis to examine patterns of maternal solicitation and adolescent disclosure that occur in adolescents' and mothers' conversations about peer relationships. An ethnically diverse sample of 68 early adolescents (M-age = 12.39; 51% girls) and their mothers from the United States participated in the investigation. Participants completed questionnaires and participated in video-recorded discussions of hypothetical situations related to peer relationships. Sequences of maternal solicitation followed by adolescent disclosure and sequences of adolescent disclosure followed by maternal solicitation occurred at higher than chance levels. Higher levels of conflict about peer relationships in conjunction with a lower likelihood of adolescent disclosure following maternal solicitation were related to lower levels of adolescent-reported prosocial behavior, higher levels of adolescentreported victimization, and higher levels of mother-reported aggression and victimization. Results suggest that similar interaction dynamics can have different effects depending on the relational context in which they take place.