Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Peer Rejection, Affiliation with Deviant Peers, Delinquency, and Risky Sexual Behavior

  • Empirical Research
  • Published:
Journal of Youth and Adolescence Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Risky sexual behavior poses significant health risks by increasing sexually transmitted infections and unintended pregnancies. Previous research has documented many factors related to risky sexual behavior. This study adds to the literature by proposing a prospective, developmental model of peer factors related to risky sexual behavior. Developmental pathways to risky sexual behavior were examined in a sample of 517 individuals (51 % female; 82 % European American, 16 % African American, 2 % other) followed from age 5–27. Structural equation models examined direct and indirect effects of peer rejection (assessed via peer nominations at ages 5, 6, 7, and 8), affiliation with deviant peers (assessed via self-report at ages 11 and 12), and delinquency (assessed via maternal report at ages 10 and 16) on risky sexual behavior (assessed via self-report at age 27). More peer rejection during childhood, affiliation with deviant peers during pre- adolescence, and delinquency in childhood and adolescence predicted more risky sexual behavior through age 27, although delinquency at age 16 was the only risk factor that had a significant direct effect on risky sexual behavior through age 27 above and beyond the other risk factors. Peer rejection was related to subsequent risk factors for girls but not boys. Peer risk factors as early as age 5 shape developmental pathways through childhood and adolescence and have implications for risky sexual behavior into adulthood.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Achenbach, T. M. (1991). Integrative guide for the 1991 CBCL 14-18, YSR, and TRF profiles. Burlington, VT: University of Vermont, Department of Psychiatry.

    Google Scholar 

  • Agha, S., & Van Rossem, R. (2004). Impact of a school-based peer sexual health intervention on normative beliefs, risk perceptions, and sexual behavior of Zambian adolescents. Journal of Adolescent Health, 34, 441–452. doi:10.1016/j.jadohealth.2003.07.016.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bayer, P. J., Pintoff, R., & Pozen, D. (2004). Building criminal capital behind bars: Peer effects in juvenile corrections. Yale University Economic Growth Center Discussion Paper No. 864. SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=441882.

  • Bentler, P. M. (1990). Comparative fit indexes in structural models. Psychological Bulletin, 107, 238–246. doi:10.1037/0033-2909.107.2.238.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Billy, J. O. G., & Udry, J. R. (1985). The influence of male and female best friends on adolescent sexual behavior. Adolescence, 20, 21–32.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Boivin, M., Hymel, S., & Bukowski, W. M. (1995). The roles of social withdrawal, peer rejection, and victimization by peers in predicting loneliness and depressed mood in childhood. Development and Psychopathology, 7, 765–785. doi:10.1017/S0954579400006830.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bollen, K. A. (1990). Overall fit in covariance structure models: Two types of sample size effects. Psychological Bulletin, 107, 256–259. doi:10.1037/0033-2909.107.2.256.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brendgen, M., Wanner, B., & Vitaro, F. (2007). Peer and teacher effects on the early onset of sexual intercourse. American Journal of Public Health, 97, 2070–2075. doi:10.2105/AJPH.2006.101287.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Brewer, D., Potterat, J., Garrett, S., Muth, S., Roberts, J., Kasprzyk, D., et al. (2000). Prostitution and the sex discrepancy in reported number of sexual partners. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 97, 12385–12388.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cavanagh, S. E. (2004). The sexual debut of girls in early adolescence: The intersection of race, pubertal timing, and friendship group characteristics. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 14, 285–312. doi:10.1111/j.1532-7795.2004.00076.x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2008). Fact sheets on STDs. http://www.cdc.gov/std/.

  • Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2011). Sexually transmitted disease surveillance 2010. Atlanta: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cheung, G. W., & Rensvold, R. B. (2002). Evaluating goodness-of-fit indexes for testing measurement invariance. Structural Equation Modeling, 9, 233–255. doi:10.1207/S15328007SEM0902_5.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Coie, J. D., Dodge, K. A., & Coppotelli, H. A. (1982). Dimensions and types of social status: A cross-age perspective. Developmental Psychology, 18, 557–569. doi:10.1037//0012-1649.18.4.557.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Connolly, J., Craig, W., Goldberg, A., & Pepler, D. J. (2004). Mixed-gender groups, dating, and romantic relationships in early adolescence. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 14, 185–207. doi:10.1111/j.1532-7795.2004.01402003.x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Connolly, J., Furman, W., & Konarski, R. (2000). The role of peers in the emergence of heterosexual romantic relationships in adolescence. Child Development, 71, 1395–1408.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Crockett, L. J., Raffaelli, M., & Shen, Y.-L. (2006). Linking self-regulation and risk proneness to risky sexual behavior: Pathways through peer pressure and early substance use. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 16, 503–525. doi:10.1111/j.1532-7795.2006.00505.x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dinkelman, T., & Lam, D. (2009). A model for understanding gender discrepancies in sexual behavior reports. Report 09-669. Population Studies Center, University of Michigan.

  • Dishion, T. J., Capaldi, D., Spracklen, K. M., & Li, F. (1995). Peer ecology of male adolescent drug use. Development and Psychopathology, 7, 803–824. doi:10.1017/S0954579400006854.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dishion, T. J., Ha, T., & Véronneau, M.-H. (2012). An ecological analysis of the effects of deviant peer clustering on sexual promiscuity, problem behavior, and childbearing from early adolescence to adulthood: An enhancement of the life history framework. Development and Psychopathology, 48, 703–717. doi:10.1037/a0027304.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dishion, T. J., Patterson, G. R., Stoolmiller, M., & Skinner, M. L. (1991). Family, school, and behavioral antecedents to early adolescent involvement with antisocial peers. Developmental Psychology, 27, 172–180. doi:10.1037/0012-1649.27.1.172.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dodge, K. A., Bates, J. E., & Pettit, G. S. (1990). Mechanisms in the cycle of violence. Science, 250, 1678–1683. doi:10.1126/science.2270481.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Fergusson, D. M., & Horwood, L. J. (1999). Prospective childhood predictors of deviant peer affiliations in adolescence. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 40, 581–592. doi:10.1111/1469-7610.00475.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • French, D. C., & Dishion, T. (2003). Predictors of early initiation of sexual intercourse among high-risk adolescents. Journal of Early Adolescence, 23, 295–315. doi:10.1177/0272431603254171.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Furman, W., & Shaffer, L. (2003). The role of romantic relationships in adolescent development. In P. Florsheim (Ed.), Adolescent romantic relations and sexual behavior: Theory, research, and practical implications (pp. 3–22). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Grunbaum, J. A., Kann, L., Kinchen, S., Ross, J., Hawkins, J., & Lowry, R., et al. (2004). Youth risk behavior surveillance—United States, 2003. In Surveillance Summaries, May 21, 2004. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 53 (No. SS-2).

  • Hu, L. T., & Bentler, P. M. (1999). Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis: Conventional criteria versus new alternatives. Structural Equation Modeling, 6, 1–55. doi:10.1080/10705519909540118.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jessor, R., Donovan, J. E., & Costa, F. M. (1991). Beyond adolescence: Problem behavior and young adult development. New York, NY: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kline, R. B. (1998). Principles and practice of structural equation modeling. New York, NY: Guilford.

    Google Scholar 

  • Koo, H. P., Rose, A., Bhaskar, B., & Walker, L. R. (2011). Relationships of pubertal development among early adolescents to sexual and nonsexual risk behaviors and caregivers’ parenting behaviors. Journal of Early Adolescence, 31, 1–26. doi:10.1177/0272431611409746.

    PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Kotchick, B. A., Shaffer, A., Forehand, R., & Miller, K. S. (2001). Adolescent sexual risk behavior: A multi-system perspective. Clinical Psychology Review, 21, 493–519. doi:10.1016/S0272-7358(99)00070-7.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lansford, J. E., Yu, T., Erath, S., Pettit, G. S., Bates, J. E., & Dodge, K. A. (2010). Developmental precursors of number of sexual partners from age 16 to 22. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 20, 651–677. doi:10.1111/j.1532-7795.2010.00654.x.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • MacKinnon, D. P. (2008). Introduction to statistical mediation analysis. New York: Erlbaum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Miller, B. C., Benson, B., & Galbraith, K. A. (2001). Family relationships and adolescent pregnancy risk: A research synthesis. Developmental Review, 21, 1–38. doi:10.1006/drev.2000.0513.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Moffitt, T. E. (1993). Adolescence-limited and life-course-persistent antisocial behavior: A developmental taxonomy. Psychological Review, 100, 674–701. doi:10.1037/0033-295X.100.4.674.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Mosher, W. D., Jones, J., & Abma, J. C. (2012). Intended and unintended births in the United States: 1982–2010. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services National Health Statistics Reports, 55.

  • Parkes, A., Waylen, A., Sayal, K., Heron, J., Henderson, M., Wight, D., et al. (2014). Which behavioral, emotional and school problems in middle-childhood predict early sexual behavior? Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 43, 507–527. doi:10.1007/s10964-013-9973-x.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Prinstein, M. J., Boergers, J., & Spirito, A. (2001). Adolescents’ and their friends’ health-risk behavior: Factors that alter or add to peer influence. Journal of Pediatric Psychology, 26, 287–298. doi:10.1093/jpepsy/26.5.287.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Prinstein, M. J., Meade, C. S., & Cohen, G. L. (2003). Adolescent oral sex, peer popularity, and perceptions of best friends’ sexual behavior. Journal of Pediatric Psychology, 28, 243–249. doi:10.1093/jpepsy/jsg012.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rodkin, P. C., Farmer, T. W., Pearl, R., & Van Acker, R. (2000). Heterogeneity of popular boys: Antisocial and prosocial configurations. Developmental Psychology, 36, 14–24. doi:10.1037/0012-1649.36.1.14.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Schafer, J. L., & Graham, J. W. (2002). Missing data: Our view of the state of the art. Psychological Methods, 7, 147–177. doi:10.1037//1082-989X.7.2.147.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Schroeder, C. M., & Prentice, D. A. (1998). Exposing pluralistic ignorance to reduce alcohol use among college students. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 28, 2150–2180. doi:10.1111/j.1559-1816.1998.tb01365.x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Smith, E. A., Udry, J. R., & Morris, N. M. (1985). Pubertal development and friends: A biosocial explanation of adolescent sexual behavior. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 26, 183–192. doi:10.2307/2136751.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Steiger, J. H. (1990). Structural model evaluation and modification: An interval estimation approach. Multivariate Behavioral Research, 25, 173–180. doi:10.1207/s15327906mbr2502_4.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Taylor-Seehafer, M., & Rew, L. (2000). Risky sexual behavior among adolescent women. Journal for Specialists in Pediatric Nursing, 5, 15–25. doi:10.1111/j.1744-6155.2000.tb00082.x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • U.S. National Center for Health Statistics. (2010). Births: Preliminary data for 2009. National Vital Statistics Reports, 59.

  • Walter, H. J., Vaughan, R. D., Gladis, M. M., Ragin, D. F., Kasen, S., & Cohall, A. T. (1992). Factors associated with AIDS risk behaviors among high school students in an AIDS epicenter. American Journal of Public Health, 82, 528–532. doi:10.2105/AJPH.82.4.528.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Wargo Aikins, J., & Litwack, S. (2011). The social competence of popular youth. In A. H. N. Cillessen, D. Schwartz, & L. Mayeux (Eds.), Peer popularity (pp. 140–164). New York: Guilford Publications.

    Google Scholar 

  • Weinstock, H., Berman, S., & Cates, W., Jr. (2004). Sexually transmitted diseases among American youth: Incidence and prevalence estimates, 2000. Perspectives on Sexual and Reproductive Health, 36, 6–10.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Wight, D., Williamson, L., & Henderson, M. (2006). Parental influences on young people’s sexual behaviour: A longitudinal analysis. Journal of Adolescence, 29, 473–494. doi:10.1016/j.adolescence.2005.08.007.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • World Health Organization. (2005). World health report 2005: Make every mother and child count. http://www.who.int/whr/2005/chap3-en.pdf?ua=1.

  • World Health Organization. (2013). Sexually transmitted infections. http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs110/en/.

  • Zimmer-Gembeck, M. J., Siebenbruner, J., & Collins, W. A. (2004). A prospective study of intraindividual and peer influences on adolescents’ heterosexual romantic and sexual behavior. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 33, 381–394. doi:10.1023/B:ASEB.0000028891.16654.2c.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

The Child Development Project has been funded by grants MH56961, MH57024, and MH57095 from the National Institute of Mental Health, HD30572 from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, and DA016903 from the National Institute on Drug Abuse. Kenneth A. Dodge is supported by Senior Scientist award 2K05 DA015226 from the National Institute on Drug Abuse. We are grateful to the individuals who have participated in this research.

Author contributions

JEL conceived of the study, participated in its design and coordination, and drafted the manuscript; KAD, RGF, JEB, and GSP participated in the design and coordination of the study and provided constructive feedback on drafts of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for Child and Family Policy, Duke University, Box 90545, Durham, NC, 27708, USA

    Jennifer E. Lansford, Kenneth A. Dodge & Reid Griffith Fontaine

  2. Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, USA

    John E. Bates

  3. Auburn University, Auburn, AL, USA

    Gregory S. Pettit

Authors
  1. Jennifer E. Lansford
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Kenneth A. Dodge
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Reid Griffith Fontaine
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. John E. Bates
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Gregory S. Pettit
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jennifer E. Lansford.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Lansford, J.E., Dodge, K.A., Fontaine, R.G. et al. Peer Rejection, Affiliation with Deviant Peers, Delinquency, and Risky Sexual Behavior. J Youth Adolescence 43, 1742–1751 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-014-0175-y

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-014-0175-y

Keywords

Search

Navigation