Travel in your way or in my way? Resolution of conflict between young adult children and their parents during family vacation decision-making.

Abstract

In light of the prevalence of travel conflict between young adult children and their parents, it is critical to examine how conflict can be effectively resolved. A mixed-methods approach was adopted in this study, which used interviews and three experiments to examine how young adult children resolve conflict with their parents and what factors affect their conflict resolution. The results have the following implications. (1) Two main styles of conflict resolution are used by young adult children, namely ‘doing what I want’ (i.e. self-assertion, persuasion) and ‘doing as parents expect’ (i.e. self-sacrifice, compliance). (2) The conflict attribution of young adult children affects their selection of resolution styles. (3) The main effect of conflict attribution of young adult children on their resolution styles is mediated by their perspective-taking and moderated by their decision-making power. This paper provides guidance to practitioners on how to manage conflicts in family travel decision-making.