Inconsistent Parenting and the Development of Externalizing Behaviors Among an Adolescent Sample

• In Event: The Role of Peers in Crime and Deviance over the Life Course

Abstract

Inconsistencies in parental discipline have been linked to the development of adolescent delinquency (Edens, Skopp, & Cahill, 2008; Loeber et al. 1995). It has been suggested this development is also impacted by peer group affiliation (Dishion, Poulin, Burraston, 2001). Despite scholarly support for both dimensions of delinquency development, there is a lack of literature that explores the role discipline might have in influencing adolescent-peer relationships. Using PROPSER (Promoting School-Community-University Partnerships to Enhance Resilience) data, the current paper looks at these two sources of influence and explores both the mediating and moderating effects of a model predicting delinquent behavior from parenting practices. Our aim is to test the anti-social behavior model posited by Patterson, DeBaryshe, & Ramsey (1989) that suggests family management practices (i.e. discipline) explain a child’s association with deviant peers which in turn predicts future adolescent delinquency.

Authors

• Mathew Kenneth Woessner, Florida State University

• Sonja E. Siennick, Florida State University

• Mark E. Feinberg, Pennsylvania State University