This was somewhat of a relief, because like many parents, we have been stressing out over finding the right school district for our kids, with many naysayers implying that we worry too much.  Now researchers at Ohio State University agree with us:  maintaining a good parent-child relationship and choosing to live in a good neighborhood play a big part in the quality of an adolescent’s friends.  The article definitely stresses both components, so it is not sufficient to buy into the best schools and then ignore your kids.  There is a strong correlation between parent-child communications and the quality of the child’s friends.

Most of us already knew this instinctively, but it is nice to see it in black and white sometimes. 

Recently it seems there has been increased press regarding research on family situations.  Earlier we posted a project completed by the University of Utah, and while I didn’t agree with everything in the study, it is still a very worthwhile cause.  As parents, we can’t live by statistics, but knowing a few trends is certainly helpful.  Ohio State offers timely information that can help us shape our parenting approach as we muddle through the unknown waters of raising children.