| This study examined the frequency and nature of parent-adolescent communication about abortion. It was postulated that mothers would be rated higher on a frequency measure of abortion communication than fathers, and that daughters would report more abortion communication with parents than sons. The study also examined the content of parent-adolescent abortion discussions, as well as the contexts in which these discussions occur. Adolescents' level of comfort and level of satisfaction with these discussions were also investigated.;Fifty-one male and fifty-one female undergraduate student volunteers, ages 18 to 24, who identified both a mother figure and father figure (e.g., biological parent, adoptive parent, step-parent) participated in the study. Participants rated communication with both of their parent figures on the newly developed Abortion Communication Questionnaire, Fisher's Weighted Topics Communication Scale, a measure of sexual communication, and on Barnes' and Olson's Parent-Adolescent Communication Form, a measure of the quality of general parent-adolescent communication. Participants also completed a questionnaire to assess the process dimensions of parent-adolescent abortion communication.;The main hypothesis was partially supported. Communication about abortion was perceived as occurring more frequently with mothers than with fathers, and daughters reported more frequent abortion communication with mothers than did sons. However, no significant difference was found between sons' and daughters' reports of abortion communication with fathers. Overall, respondents reported feeling satisfied with their reported levels of abortion communication.;Abortion appears to be discussed indirectly in families, with the more personal and private aspects of abortion being discussed less frequently than the social, moral and political aspects. Television was frequently the facilitator of both abortion communication and attitude transmission. Frequency of abortion communication was found to be strongly related to the frequency of sexual communication, but was generally unrelated to the quality of general parent-adolescent communication.;The results suggest that occasional communication about abortion may be adequate for the transmission of parents' abortion attitudes. However, the frequency of abortion communication appears to be positively related to the perceived influence of that communication on adolescents' abortion attitudes.;The implications of these findings for parents, educators, and abortion activists were discussed, as were directions for future research. |
