Residential Mobility, Externalizing Behaviors, and the Moderating Role of the Parent-Adolescent Relationship

• In Event: 1-122 - Educational and Family Contexts of Residentially Mobile Children: Potential Pathways for Improving Child Outcomes

Integrative Statement

Residential mobility has been linked with poor behavioral, academic, and health outcomes during adolescence (Gillespie, 2017). However, characteristics of the child, family, or neighborhood may moderate the relationship between residential mobility and adolescent outcomes (i.e. Gasper, et al., 2010). For example, Gillespie (2014) recently examined parenting in conjunction with residential mobility, and results suggested that mobile youth with closer parent-child relationships demonstrated more favorable behavioral and academic outcomes following a move, when compared with mobile adolescents with more distant relationships with parents. Close relationships between the parent and child have been associated with lower levels of depression and externalizing problems (Conger, et al., 1994). The purpose of the study is to examine the potential moderating role of parent-adolescent relationship quality and residential mobility in terms of adolescent externalizing behaviors.
The research question will be addressed using data from year 15 follow-up of the Fragile Families and Child Well-Being study, and examines >3,000 families from large U.S. cities who have been followed since the focal child’s birth between 1990-2000. Children were specifically sampled if their parents were unmarried.
The majority of the sample moved at least once since the previous interview conducted in year 9 (61.15%). Residential mobility was characterized as stable (did not move), low-mobility (1-2 moves), and high mobility (>3 moves). Adolescent-parent relationship quality is operationalized as closeness between the primary caregiver (PCG) and adolescent as reported by the PCG and the degree of PCG limit setting and responsibilities, reported by the adolescent. The teen-reported dependent variables include externalizing and internalizing behaviors from the Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) and measures for teen delinquency from Add Health. Study covariates include adolescent race, gender, age, PCG education level, PCG depression, PCG poverty, and parental marital status. We used regression analyses to answer study questions. Study descriptive characteristics are found in Table 1.
Findings suggest the level of closeness between the parent and adolescent and PCG limit setting may modify how residential mobility is associated with externalizing behaviors. In regards to closeness, adolescents who frequently moved and were less close with their parents, had higher externalizing scores than adolescents who were classified as low-closeness, low-mobility or stable, which was not the case with closer relationships between the PCG and adolescent (see Figure 1). Highly-mobile adolescents had higher externalizing scores than adolescents who moved less frequently or not at all when in a high limit setting (see Figure 1).
These results suggest that parental closeness may serve as a protective factor in terms of externalizing behaviors among highly-mobile adolescents. On the other hand, limit setting may be detrimental to highly-mobile adolescents, or highly-mobile adolescents with high externalizing behaviors may elicit more limit setting from parents. Results will be discussed in terms of implication for policies and supports for highly-mobile adolescents.

Authors

• Sloane B Glover, West Virginia University
  Presenting Author

• Sara Anderson, West Virginia University
  Non-Presenting Author