Maternal Support and Deviance Among Rural Adolescents: The Mediating Role of Self-Esteem

• In Event: Mental Disorder and Offending

Abstract

Supportive mothering serves as a protective factor for adolescent deviance. However, the precise mechanism explaining this relationship is poorly understood. The current investigation tested whether self-esteem mediated the maternal support-deviance link; it also tested whether it varied by sex. Data were collected from N = 940 middle and high school students in rural Kentucky (53% female, Mage = 14.8 years). The psychometric properties of focal variables were tested in a CFA; main model tests were also completed in SEM. The hypothesized model provided good fit, χ2 = 409.16, p <.001, CFI = .937, RMSEA = .04. Findings indicated that the link between maternal support and deviance was mediated by self-esteem, β = -.07, p <.001; maternal support was positively associated with self-esteem (β = .34, p <.001), and self-esteem was negatively associated with deviance (β = -.21, p <.001). Additionally, results indicated a significant moderating effect by sex, where maternal support had a significantly stronger effect on girls’ self-esteem; on the other hand, self-esteem had a stronger effect on boys’ deviance. Findings provide some evidence of how positive parenting is associated with a good sense of self-esteem that in turn decreases the likelihood of adolescents engaging in deviance.

Authors

• Dan Liu, University of Kentucky

• Albert J. Ksinan, University of Kentucky

• Alexander T. Vazsonyi, University of Kentucky