The Impact of Parental Conflict on the Academic Resilience of High School Students

Abstract

High school is a period when students are under tremendous academic pressure. The family environment, especially the relationship between parents, plays a crucial role in the development of teenagers. This study aims to systematically review the existing literature and explore the pathways and key factors of parental conflict on the academic resilience of high school students. This research indicates that destructive parental conflicts can increase students’ emotional stress, consume cognitive resources, and thereby undermine their academic resilience. However, three factors significantly moderated this relationship: the types of the conflict, including destructive and constructive conflicts, the student’s own coping strategies, and social support from the school and peers. The negative impact of constructive conflicts is minimal, while effective coping strategies and adequate support can buffer the detrimental effect of destructive conflicts. Understanding these dynamic relationships is crucial for parents, educators and psychological counselors to provide targeted support for high school students.