Family relationships and adjustment in South Europe: a cross-national comparison between Spain and Portugal during Emerging Adulthood

Abstract

Emerging Adulthood in South European countries occurs within the family context. Different changes in family patterns have been observed during this time period in order to find a new equilibrium in family relationships. Moreover, this readjustment is influenced by the characteristics of the context. Hence, the need to study in a transcultural way the role played by the family for emerging adults’ development. A cross-national study was carried out in Spain and Portugal in order to analyze the quality of the family relationships during emerging adulthood in both countries and to study the relationship between family bonds and emerging adults’ psychological well-being and distress. Data are analyzed paying special attention to differences between women and men. Participants in the study belong to two samples with an overall 1000 emerging adults from both countries. Participants fulfilled a questionnaire that included socio-demographic variables, family relationships variables and psychological well-being and distress. We found that emerging adults perceived their relationships with their parents in a quite similar way in both countries. In general, emerging adults perceived positive family relationships in both Spain and Portugal. Moreover, emerging adults from both countries, who sensed better family relationships showed a higher level of psychological well-being and a lower level of psychological distress. Furthermore, interesting gender differences were found. These results show that family is in fact a relevant source of support during this stage. Besides, positive family relationships could be a protective factor for emerging adults’ adjustment in both countries.