Parental Support and Control as Predictors of Adolescent Drinking, Delinquency, and Related Problem Behaviors

TLDR

Methodological issues in sampling, respondent selection, and measurement of parental support and control are critiqued in the context of adolescent socialization research. The study examines how parenting practices, especially support and control, influence adolescent drinking, delinquency, and other problem behaviors. Using a representative sample of 699 adolescents, with Black families oversampled (n = 211), the authors assess parenting practices and adolescent outcomes. Parental support and monitoring predict adolescent outcomes even after controlling for socioeconomic, demographic, and family factors, while peer orientation also predicts drinking and deviance and interacts with parenting. Abstract adapted from Journal of Marriage and the Family (1992); © 1992 National Council on Family Relations.

Abstract

This study uses a representative general population sample of 699 adolescents and their families to examine the effects of parenting practices, particularly support and control, on the development of adolescent drinking, delinquency, and other problem behaviors. Black families were oversampled (n = 211) to permit meaningful analyses. The findings confirm that parental support and monitoring are important predictors of adolescent outcomes even after taking into account critical demographic/family factors, including socioeconomic indicators, age, gender, and race of the adolescent, family structure, and family history of alcohol abuse. In addition, peer orientation remains a significant predictor of drinking behavior and deviance and interacts with aspects of parenting. Methodological issues associated with sampling, family respondent, and measurement of support and control are critiqued as they pertain to parental socialization and adolescent outcome research. (Abstract Adapted from Source: Journal of Marriage and the Family, 1992. Copyright © 1992 by the National Council on Family Relations) Parental Control Parental Support Parenting Practices Juvenile Behavior Juvenile Delinquency Juvenile Offender Juvenile Problem Behavior Juvenile Substance Use Family Relations Parent Child Relations Family Risk Factors Delinquency Causes Delinquency Predictors Delinquency Risk Factors Behavior Causes Behavior Predictors Behavior Risk Factors Substance Use Causes Substance Use Risk Factors Substance Use Predictors Alcohol Use Causes 07-03