Abstract
Adolescent girls’ disruptive behavior problems (DBP) are associated with risk for other mental health challenges and legal system involvement. Existing literature suggests early pubertal timing and low maternal monitoring might confer risk for DBP; however, few studies examine the combined influence of these factors, particularly in samples at risk for both DBP and early pubertal timing. This longitudinal study examined whether perceived pubertal timing moderated the association between maternal monitoring and DBP in a treatment-seeking sample of 256 African American adolescent girls (ages 12–16) and their female caregivers. Hierarchical linear regression analyses demonstrated that pubertal timing moderated the association between maternal monitoring and DBP. For early-developing girls, maternal monitoring and DBP at 1-year were negatively associated. Maternal monitoring was not related to DBP at 1-year for on-time and later-developing girls. Findings suggest that maternal monitoring may be a more effective parenting practice for preventing DBP in early-developing girls as compared to their on-time and later-developing peers.
Highlights
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Pubertal timing moderated the relation between monitoring and DBP in a treatment-seeking sample of African American girls.
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Maternal monitoring and DBP at 1-year were negatively related for early developers.
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Maternal monitoring was not related to DBP at 1-year for on-time/later developers.
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Maternal monitoring may be more effective for preventing DBP in early-developing girls as compared to their on-time and later-developing peers.
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Acknowledgements
This research was supported by two grants from the National Institute of Mental Health (R01MH065155; L40 MH108089).
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H.I.W. conceived of the study, participated in its design, conducted analyses, and drafted the manuscript. S.J. conceived of the study, participated in its design, conducted analyses, and helped to draft the manuscript. C.A.G. participated in the study design and helped to draft the manuscript. E.M.E. and G.R.D. conceived of the larger study from which these data are generated, participated in the coordination of the larger study, and participated in revision of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
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White, H.I., Javdani, S., Greenbaum, C.A. et al. The Combined Influence of Monitoring and Early Puberty on Disruptive Behavior Problems in African American Girls. J Child Fam Stud 31, 1441–1453 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-021-02184-y
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-021-02184-y