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Parental Control, Adolescent Delinquency, and Young Adult Criminal Behavior

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Abstract

Adolescence and young adulthood are periods of increased autonomy. Higher levels of autonomy could increase the opportunities for risky behavior such as delinquency. During these periods of transition, the role of parental control becomes less clear. Previous studies have demonstrated the association between parental control and adolescent delinquency, but few have extended examination of such association into young adulthood. The purpose of the study is to examine the association between parental control and delinquency and parental control in adolescence and young adult criminal behavior. We propose that, even though adolescents seek autonomy during this stage, lack of parental control is positively associated with delinquency and has continued influence in young adulthood. Using a national longitudinal dataset, we analyzed the relationship between parental control and delinquency. Findings from regression analyses indicated that lack of parental control had a positive association with delinquency both concurrently and longitudinally into young adulthood. When analyzing delinquency in young adulthood, females reported a lower level of delinquency and younger age was associated with more delinquent behavior. Unexpectedly, parents’ college education was positively associated with delinquency in young adulthood. The findings suggest that parental control is still influential through the period of adolescence and early parental control is still influential in young adulthood. Ways to practice parental control and implications of results are further discussed.

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Acknowledgments

This study uses data from Add Health, a program project directed by Kathleen Mullan Harris and designed by J. Richard Udry, Peter, S. Bearman, and Kathleen Mullan Harris at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and funded by a grant P01-HD31921 from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, with cooperative funding from 23 other federal agencies and foundations. Special acknowledgement is due Ronald R. Rindfuss and Barbara Entwisle for assistance in the original design. Information on how to obtain the Add Health data files is available on the Add Health website (http://www.cpc.unc.edu/addhealth). No direct support was received from grant P01-HD31921 for this analysis.

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  1. Department of Family and Child Sciences, The Florida State University, 225 Sandels Building, Tallahassee, FL, 32306-1491, USA

    DeAnna Harris-McKoy & Ming Cui

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  1. DeAnna Harris-McKoy
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  2. Ming Cui
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Correspondence to DeAnna Harris-McKoy.

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Harris-McKoy, D., Cui, M. Parental Control, Adolescent Delinquency, and Young Adult Criminal Behavior. J Child Fam Stud 22, 836–843 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-012-9641-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-012-9641-x

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