Abstract
Studies using valid measures of monitoring activities have not found the anticipated main effects linking greater monitoring activity with fewer behavioral problems. This study focused on two contexts in which monitoring activities may be particularly influential. Early adolescents (n = 218, M age = 11.5 years, 51% female, 49% European American, 47% African American) reported their unsupervised time, beliefs about the legitimacy of their parents’ authority, and their own involvement in antisocial behavior. Mothers and adolescents reported their perceptions of adolescent disclosure and parental solicitation and control. Adolescents’ perceptions of greater parental solicitation at age 11 were associated with less antisocial behavior at age 12 (when controlling for age 11 antisocial behavior) among adolescents reporting large amounts of unsupervised time and weak legitimacy beliefs. Perceived parental solicitation may be an effective deterrent of antisocial behavior when adolescents spend a lot of time unsupervised and for adolescents who are likely to challenge the legitimacy of their parents’ authority.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Barber, B. K., Olsen, J. E., & Shagle, S. C. (1994). Associations between parental psychological and behavioral control and youth internalized and externalized behaviors. Child Development, 65, 1120–1136.
Bosworth, K., & Espelage, D. (1995). Teen conflict survey. Unpublished manuscript, Center for Adolescent Studies, Indiana University.
Cohen, J., Cohen, P., West, S. G., & Aiken, L. S. (2003). Applied multiple regression/correlation analysis for the behavioral sciences (3rd ed.). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
Conger, R. D., & Ge, X. (1999). Conflict and cohesion in parent-adolescent relations: Changes in emotional expression from early to midadolescence. In M. J. Cox (Ed.), Conflict and cohesion in families: Causes and consequences (pp. 185–206). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
Crouter, A. C., & Head, M. R. (2002). Parental monitoring and knowledge of children. In M. H. Bornstein (Ed.), Handbook of parenting: Vol. 3: Being and becoming a parent (2nd ed., pp. 461–483). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
Darling, N., Cumsille, P., & Martinez, M. L. (2007). Adolescents’ as active agents in the socialization process: Legitimacy of parental authority and obligation to obey as predictors of obedience. Journal of Adolescence, 30, 297–311.
Dishion, T. J., & McMahon, R. J. (1998). Parental monitoring and the prevention of child and adolescent problem behavior: A conceptual and empirical formulation. Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review, 1, 61–75.
Dishion, T. J., Nelson, S. E., & Kavanagh, K. (2003). The family check-up with high-risk young adolescents: Preventing early-onset substance use by parent monitoring. Behavior Therapy, 34, 553–571.
Farrell, A. D., Kung, E. M., White, K. S., & Valois, R. F. (2000). The structure of self-reported aggression, drug use, and delinquent behaviors during early adolescence. Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, 29, 282–292.
Gonzales, N. A., Cauce, A. M., & Mason, C. A. (1996). Interobserver agreement in the assessment of parental behavior and parent-adolescent conflict: African American mothers, daughters, and independent observers. Child Development, 67, 1483–1498.
Keijsers, L., Branje, S. J. T., VanderValk, I. E., & Meeus, W. (2009a). Reciprocal effects between parental solicitation, parental control, adolescent disclosure, and adolescent delinquency. Journal of Research on Adolescence (in press).
Keijsers, L., Frijns, T., Branje, S. J. T., & Meeus, W. (2009b). Developmental links of adolescent disclosure, parental solicitation, and control with delinquency: Moderation by parental support. Developmental Psychology, 45, 1314–1327.
Kerr, M., & Stattin, H. (2000). What parents know, how they know it, and several forms of adolescent adjustment: Further support for a reinterpretation of monitoring. Developmental Psychology, 36, 366–380.
Kerr, M., & Stattin, H. (2003). Parenting of adolescents: Action or reaction? In A. C. Crouter & A. Booth (Eds.), Children’s influence on family dynamics: The neglected side of family relationships (pp. 121–151). Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.
Kerr, M., Stattin, H., & Burk, W. J. (2009). A reinterpretation of parental monitoring in longitudinal perspective. Journal of Research on Adolescence (in press).
Kiesner, J., Dishion, T. J., Poulin, F., & Pastore, M. (2009). Temporal dynamics linking aspects of parental monitoring with early adolescent antisocial behavior. Social Development (in press). doi:10.1111/j.1467-9507.2008.00525.x.
Laird, R. D., & Marrero, M. D. (2009). Information management and behavior problems: Is concealing misbehavior necessarily a sign of trouble? Journal of Adolescence (in press). doi:10.1016/j.adolescence.2009.05.018.
Laird, R. D., Pettit, G. S., Bates, J. E., & Dodge, K. A. (2003). Parents’ monitoring-relevant knowledge and adolescents’ delinquent behavior: Evidence of correlated developmental changes and reciprocal influences. Child Development, 74, 752–768.
Laird, R. D., Pettit, G. S., Dodge, K. A., & Bates, J. E. (1998). The social ecology of school-age child care. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 19, 341–360.
Larson, R. W., Richards, M. H., Moneta, G., Holmbeck, G., & Duckett, E. (1996). Changes in adolescents’ daily interactions with their families from ages 10 to 18: Disengagement and transformation. Developmental Psychology, 32, 744–754.
Muthén, L. K., & Muthén, B. O. (1998–2007). Mplus user’s guide (5th ed.). Los Angeles, CA: Muthén & Muthén.
Patterson, G. R., & Stouthamer Loeber, M. (1984). The correlation of family management practices and delinquency. Child Development, 55, 1299–1307.
Pettit, G. S., Bates, J. E., Dodge, K. A., & Meece, D. W. (1999). The impact of after-school peer contact on early adolescent externalizing problems is moderated by parental monitoring, perceived neighborhood safety, and prior adjustment. Child Development, 70, 768–778.
Schafer, J. L., & Graham, J. W. (2002). Missing data: Our view of the state of the art. Psychological Methods, 7, 147–177.
Smetana, J. G., & Daddis, C. (2002). Domain-specific antecedents of parental psychological control and monitoring: The role of parenting beliefs and practices. Child Development, 73, 563–580.
Smetana, J. G., Metzger, A., Gettman, D. C., & Campione-Barr, N. (2006). Disclosure and secrecy in adolescent-parent relationships. Child Development, 77, 201–217.
Stanton, B. F., Li, X., Galbraith, J., Cornick, G., Feigelman, S., Kaljee, L., et al. (2000). Parental underestimates of adolescent risk behavior: A randomized, controlled trial of a parental monitoring intervention. Journal of Adolescent Health, 26, 18–26.
Stattin, H., & Kerr, M. (2000). Parental monitoring: A reinterpretation. Child Development, 71, 1072–1085.
Acknowledgments
We thank the teachers and principals from the East Baton Rouge Parish School System and the families who participated in this research. This research was supported by grants from the Louisiana Board of Regents Support Fund (LEQSF-RD-A-02) and the National Science Foundation (BCS 0517980 & 0807650).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Laird, R.D., Marrero, M.D. & Sentse, M. Revisiting Parental Monitoring: Evidence that Parental Solicitation Can be Effective When Needed Most. J Youth Adolescence 39, 1431–1441 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-009-9453-5
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-009-9453-5