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It's a two-way street: the bidirectional relationship between parenting and delinquency
1Department of Sociology, Baylor University, One Bear Place #97326, Waco, TX 76798, USA. Martha_Sherman@Baylor.edu
Journal of Youth and Adolescence
|March 25, 2011
Summary
Parental attachment influences adolescent delinquency, and conversely, a child's delinquency impacts parental attachment. This bidirectional relationship is key in understanding youth behavior and family dynamics.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Sociology
- Criminology
Background:
- The family is the primary socializing institution for adolescents.
- Social control theory examines parental influence on delinquency but overlooks reciprocal effects.
- Bidirectional relationships between parenting and delinquency require further investigation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine bidirectional relationships between adolescent delinquency and parental behaviors.
- To investigate the effects of parental attachment, monitoring, and involvement on delinquency.
- To analyze reciprocal influences between child and parent behaviors.
Main Methods:
- Utilized data from 12,505 adolescents (ages 12-17) from the Add Health study.
- Estimated eighteen cross-lag regression models to assess bidirectional effects.
- Analyzed general, property, and violent delinquency alongside parental attachment, monitoring, and involvement.
Main Results:
- Parental attachment significantly influences delinquency, and adolescent delinquency impacts parental attachment.
- No significant effects of parental monitoring or involvement on delinquency were found.
- Adolescent delinquency was associated with decreased parental involvement.
Conclusions:
- A reciprocal relationship exists between parental attachment and adolescent delinquency.
- Parental monitoring and involvement do not appear to significantly impact delinquency.
- Findings support transactional and interactional models of parent-child relationships.
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