Conflict happens when two people disagree based on their own goals, values, or beliefs. It's not always as simple as an argument. Rather, conflict is what happens right before the argument; it's what the participants disagree about before they start calling each other names.

Parents and teenagers inherently have many opportunities to experience conflict with one another. Adolescence is a time when independence and parental influence clash, since teens are able to think on their own but still live with parents who have rules and expectations for them. Teenagers don't necessarily hold the same beliefs and values as their parents, and their goal to have fun conflicts with their parents’ goal to keep them safe.