Is parent personality associated with adolescent outcomes for their child? A response surface analysis approach

Abstract A parent has immense control over the experiences of their offspring. Given that personality is associated with important life outcomes—mediated through decision‐making processes—it is likely that parental personality impacts their child's life outcomes. While “compensatory” influences from another person have been identified in romantic partners, the impact of parent's personality on their child's outcomes has not been thoroughly examined. Using a response surface analysis approach, we will look at the associations of adolescent personality with the personality of their parents for the prediction of adolescent outcomes ( N dyads = 9395). Parent personality predicted outcomes for their child above and beyond their child's traits. There were few instances of child–parent personality interactions, suggesting the mechanisms linking child and parent traits to child outcomes are largely independent. Findings suggest parents’ personalities offer a unique influence on the outcomes for children while they develop and navigate through adolescence. Highlights This paper investigated if parental Big Five personality traits predicted outcomes for their child in adolescence, above and beyond the child's own traits. Response surface analyses indicated that parent personality does predict outcomes for their adolescent child, with few interaction or similarity effects emerging. These findings suggest the Big Five traits of parents are impactful in the child and parent relationship and can uniquely influence outcomes for the child above and beyond their own traits.