Is adolescent rebellion universal?

Forty volunteer subjects were interviewed in an attempt to determine if indications of adolescent rebellion would be found across the range of disciplinary styles. An analysis of the taped interviews did not support the expectations. Twenty-five percent of the sample manifested high rebelliousness and none of these subjects came from low-control homes. Seveny-five percent of the sample showed little or no rebelliousness at all. Low rebelliousness was evently distributed across the spectrum of disciplinary styles. The twenty per-cent incidence of permissive homes was higher than other research indicated it might be. Authoritarian parents in this sample appeared to be less restricting than would have been expected. A wider range of adolescent behavior was accepted and fewer issues provoked conflict and rebellion as the parents appeared to be responding to a changing society.