Network of Relationships Inventory – Chinese Version

Description

After entering puberty, adolescents spend less time at home due to the development of autonomy and independence. This leads to increased conflicts with parents, a greater focus on activities outside the family, and a heightened emphasis on friends and friendships. Unlike the peer acceptance characterized by group interaction, friendship is an intimate, reciprocal relationship that occurs between two individuals, structured as a mutually supportive bond that offers positive feelings to one another. According to Sullivan’s theory, the relative importance of peer acceptance and friendship changes as individuals’ social needs develop; peer group acceptance is more important during childhood, while friendship holds greater significance during adolescence. Numerous studies indicate that strong friendship relationships facilitate positive adaptation in adolescents. For instance, adolescents with high-quality friendships tend to have fewer behavioral problems, lower levels of depression, anxiety, and loneliness, as well as higher self-esteem, social skills, and social acceptance. However, researchers note that despite the changing interaction patterns with parents and increasing peer influence, parents still play a crucial role in the social-emotional development of adolescents. Nonetheless, due to biological, social, and cognitive changes in adolescents, the importance of parents is more reflected in providing emotional and instrumental support, as well as maintaining a psychological connection with their children, rather than relying on physical strength and shared experiences.

Authors and Contact Email

Tang Lumei et al. (Email: information not available)

Purpose

The purpose of the study was to measure parental support in adolescents using the Network of Relationships Inventory (NRI) developed by Furman and Buhrmester in 1985, and revised by French et al. The study referenced Rubin et al. (2004) and consolidated four dimensions into a total score to account for paternal and maternal support, which were highly correlated (r=0.74, pTest Year
Information not available.

Administration Method and Scoring

A total average score was derived from the first four positive dimensions categorized as a parental support dimension, while conflict and arguments were categorized under parental conflict. Only parental support was considered to assess the quality of parent-child relationships.

Reliability and Validity

Information not available.

Factors and Subscales

The first four positive dimensions can be further unified into the parental support dimension, while arguments and conflicts belong to the parental conflict dimension.

Keywords

Adolescence, Friendship, Parental Support, Peer Acceptance, Social-Emotional Development

Items in Chinese

1. 在空闲时，你有多少时间和这个人在一起?
2. 这个人对你的感情(爱或喜欢)有多么强烈?
3. 你与这个人讨论你不愿意让别人知道的事情多吗？
4. 这个人有多么喜欢你或爱你？
5. 他（她）帮你解决问题或做事情吗？
6. 你与他（她）分享你的秘密和个人感受吗？
7. 你和他（她）争吵多吗？
8. 当你需要的时候，他（她）经常帮助你吗？
9. 这个人在多大程度上真正关心你？
10. 你和他（她）意见不一致、争吵的时候多吗？
11. 你经常和他（她）一起出去玩或做一些有趣的事情吗？
12. 你和他（她）讨论各种各样的事情多吗？
13. 你和他（她）一起做有趣的事情多吗？
14. 他（她）经常教给你做你不会做的事情吗？
15. 你们吵架、闹矛盾或生对方的气多吗？

Items in English

1. How much time do you spend with this person during your free time?
2. How strong are this person’s feelings (love or liking) for you?
3. Do you discuss things with this person that you wouldn’t want others to know?
4. How much does this person like or love you?
5. Does he/she help you solve problems or get things done?
6. Do you share your secrets and personal feelings with him/her?
7. How often do you argue with him/her?
8. Does he/she often help you when you need it?
9. To what extent does this person genuinely care about you?
10. How often do you disagree or argue with him/her?
11. Do you often go out and do fun activities with him/her?
12. Do you discuss a variety of topics with him/her?
13. Do you do fun things together often?
14. Does he/she often teach you how to do things you don’t know how to do?
15. How often do you have arguments or conflicts with each other?

References

Rubin et al. (2004)
Furman and Buhrmester (1985)
French et al. (information not available)