Research indicates that teenagers experiencing conflict with their fathers are less likely to seek specialized mental health services. Mina Moeineslam, a Ph.D. candidate at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), states, "The more conflict teens experience with their father, the less likely they will later use specialized mental health services."
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Moeineslam is the lead author of a study published in European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, which emphasizes the importance of fathers in the mental health support system for adolescents.
The study draws on data from Norway's Trondheim Early Secure Study (TESS), following 822 adolescents aged 12 to 18 over four surveys. The researchers evaluated the adolescents' perceived closeness to their mother, father, and best friend, as well as the amount of conflict experienced in these relationships.
While no notable associations were found between mental health service usage and the relationships with mothers or best friends, conflict with fathers was a significant factor. Silje Steinsbekk, a professor at NTNU, notes, "Our study suggests that need-related factors and clinical criteria are more important in determining admission to specialist services than relational factors." However, she points out that good relationships can play a critical early role in encouraging youth to seek professional support.
The study also examined additional influencing factors, including previous use of health services, gender, parental employment and relationship status, parents' mental health, the adolescents' emotional health symptoms, functional impairments, perceived need for help, and stressful life events. Vera Skalicka, an associate professor, highlights that the link between father-teen conflict and reduced service use persists even when considering these other risk factors, although the study does not establish causation.
The reasons behind the reduced service usage among youth with father conflict merit further investigation. Such conflict may hinder youths from disclosing mental health issues or prompt parents to misinterpret their need for professional help. Lars Wichstrøm, a TESS professor, calls for more research to clarify these relationships.
The full study can be found in the article "Does the quality of the relationship to parents and peers predict mental health service use during adolescence? A prospective community study" in European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry.