Parent–Adolescent Reciprocity in a Conflictual Situation Predicts Peer Interaction in Adolescents With ASD

Parent–child reciprocity plays a signicant role in shaping children's social interaction skills. The development of conflict management skills throughout childhood and adolescence impacts the individual's social adjustment. The increase in conflictual interaction with one's parents during adolescence affects the transformation of parent–adolescent interaction into a more mutual, equal relationship. Adolescents with ASD and their parents may struggle in this type of interaction due to the adolescents' social and regulatory impairments, in addition to their dependence on their parents' involvement and guidance. The current study aimed to evaluate differences in the way adolescents with and without ASD interact with their parents in a conflictual situation. In addition, the association between parent–adolescent reciprocity and the adolescent's social interaction with an unfamiliar peer was examined in the ASD group. Thirty adolescents with ASD and their parents and 30 typically developing (TD) controls were assessed during a standardized conflict interaction. In addition, adolescents with ASD took part in a conversation with an unfamiliar peer. Interactions were videotaped and coded. Results revealed that during the conflictual interaction, compared to their TD peers, adolescents with ASD were more involved in the conversation and less withdrawn from the parent, while their parents were more sensitive and less intrusive toward them. Parent–adolescent reciprocity was poorer in the ASD (compared to the TD) dyad and was positively associated with the adolescents' social-conversational skills with a peer. These findings emphasize the different developmental trajectory parent–adolescent relationship takes in adolescents with ASD, and its impact on the adolescent's social skills.