Quality of life of high school adolescents according to parental level of education

Abstract

Introduction: During adolescence, period marked by the accelerated body development, several factors can influence the quality of life. Objective: To identify the correlation between adolescents´ quality of life and their parents' level of education. Method: Seven hundred and seventy-three students, between the age of 14 and 19, from the city of Paranaguá, Paraná, Brazil, participated in the survey in a convenience sample by conglomerates. Sociodemographic data and parents’ level of education were collected, in addition to the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory™ assessment, version 4.0 (PedsQL 4.0). Results: Children of mothers with college degree showed more positive quality of life in the Physical (p=0.010), School (p=0.014) and Total Quality of Life (p=0.002) dimensions, compared to the children of mothers with elementary school. In the Social dimension, there was a difference between higher education and other levels of education. Children of fathers with college degree showed higher positive perception of quality of life in the Physical dimension (p=0.008), compared to other levels of education. In the School dimension, children had a higher perception (p=0.036) compared to the peers of parents with complete elementary school. Furthermore, there was a correlation between the level of education of parents in Physical (p=0.002 father; p=0.003 mother), School (p=0.004 father; p=0.028 mother) and Total Quality of Life (p=0.002 father; p=0.002 mother) dimensions. Conclusion: This study revealed the relationship between a better quality of life for the adolescents studied with a higher level of education of their parents.