A study examined parent-child differences in the Family Communication Patterns (FCP) model using the FCP's socio- and concept orientation measures extended to include measures of structure of control and involvement with the expectation that developmental differences in interpretation by parents and children will be demonstrated via differing associations among the various measures. The subjects included 43 parent-child pairs from the San Francisco Peninsula in which at least one parent attended a parenting seminar at least once, voluntarily or under court order, from 1983 to 1986. The children were at least 10 years old but had not graduated from high school. A second group included 71 parent-child pairs from a Catholic school where the children were seventh through twelfth graders. Confidential and separate self-report questionnaires were designed through review and modification of existing instruments and were administered to the parents and children. Respondents were primarily upper-income, white, and from two-parent households. Results indicated that meaningful structural differences exist between parent and child interpretations of family communication norms, and that a great deal of quantitative and qualitative disagreement exists between parent and child regarding the implications of the measures. Although the small sample size limits the generalizability of the results, further analysis and development of the FCP model may ultimately help researchers find measures that may be applied at a system level. (One table of data and 4 figures are included; 32 references and a list of questions asked are appended.) (RS)