Family Relational Dialectics: A Systemic Model for Explaining Relational Factors Contributing to Adolescents' Faith Maturity, Life Values, and Commitment to Christ
type: CreativeWork
description: Problem Though widespread studies have been conducted on the psycho-socio-cultural effects of family systems functioning on individuals’ developmental outcomes, there is limited discussion on the direct correlations between family relational encounters and adolescents’ development of faith and life values. The effects of dialectical interplay within family systems are often missed, misinterpreted, or minimized. This study presumed that because familial relationships have far-reaching psycho-socio-cultural effects on individuals’ development outcomes, there are also likely effects on certain religious outcomes. Subsequently, certain parent-child relational encounters were examined to determine whether they have significant effects on adolescents’ faith maturity, life values, and commitment to Christ. Method A quantitative, non-experimental, exploratory correlational research design utilizing secondary data analysis was used to test the family systems dialectics (FSD) model. The FSD model is a synthesis of tenets of family systems theories (FST) and relational dialectics theory (RDT) used to conceptualize possible effects of certain parent-child relational encounters. The population sample consisting of adolescents attending high schools affiliated with the Seventh-day Adventist Church was drawn from the Valuegenesis2 census carried out by the Hancock Center for Youth and Family Ministry, La Sierra University, Riverside, California. Forty-one observed items extracted from Valugenesis2 were used to indicate the latent constructs family climate (FC) and FSD, and the outcome variables—faith maturity (FM), life values (LV), and commitment to Christ (CC). The latent construct FC was indicated by adolescents’ perceptions of family happiness (FC1), level of love in family (FC2), parent-child relationship (FC3), parents’ support of child (FC4), verbal expression of love (FC5), and response to family rules (FC6). Likewise, the FSD construct was indicated by their perception of…
abstract: Problem Though widespread studies have been conducted on the psycho-socio-cultural effects of family systems functioning on individuals’ developmental outcomes, there is limited discussion on the direct correlations between family relational encounters and adolescents’ development of faith and life values. The effects of dialectical interplay within family systems are often missed, misinterpreted, or minimized. This study presumed that because familial relationships have far-reaching psycho-socio-cultural effects on individuals’ development outcomes, there are also likely effects on certain religious outcomes. Subsequently, certain parent-child relational encounters were examined to determine whether they have significant effects on adolescents’ faith maturity, life values, and commitment to Christ. Method A quantitative, non-experimental, exploratory correlational research design utilizing secondary data analysis was used to test the family systems dialectics (FSD) model. The FSD model is a synthesis of tenets of family systems theories (FST) and relational dialectics theory (RDT) used to conceptualize possible effects of certain parent-child relational encounters. The population sample consisting of adolescents attending high schools affiliated with the Seventh-day Adventist Church was drawn from the Valuegenesis2 census carried out by the Hancock Center for Youth and Family Ministry, La Sierra University, Riverside, California. Forty-one observed items extracted from Valugenesis2 were used to indicate the latent constructs family climate (FC) and FSD, and the outcome variables—faith maturity (FM), life values (LV), and commitment to Christ (CC). The latent construct FC was indicated by adolescents’ perceptions of family happiness (FC1), level of love in family (FC2), parent-child relationship (FC3), parents’ support of child (FC4), verbal expression of love (FC5), and response to family rules (FC6). Likewise, the FSD construct was indicated by their perception of…
author: Fraser, Jasmine J
keywords: Family Relationships, Faith, Maturity, Life Values, Family, Life Course, and Society, Religion
date published: 2018-01-01T08:00:00Z
date modified: 2026-07-24T00:53:24Z
provider: Andrews University
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: Andrews University