Conflict in childhood and reproductive development

Abstract

Belsky, Steinberg, and Draper (1991) predicted that early childhood stress or conflict in the family environment would be associated with late childhood behavioral symptoms, early puberty, and early, less discriminate reproductive behavior. This report includes a review of previous research and the results from a cross-sectional self-report survey of childhood family life and adolescent development in 380 secondary school students aged 16 to 19 from southern Italy. In women, more stress in quality of family life throughout childhood (birth to age 11), more parental marital unhappiness throughout childhood (birth to age 11), more conflict with mother throughout childhood (birth to age 11), more rejection from father throughout childhood (birth to age 11), less emotional closeness to mother throughout childhood (birth to age 11), and more behavioral independence from mother or father in late childhood (age 8 to 11) were associated with earlier menarche. Earlier menarche was associated with earlier age at dating men and older age of first sexual intercourse partner relative to own age at first intercourse. In men, more parental marital conflict in early childhood (birth to age 7), less emotional closeness to father throughout childhood (birth to age 11), and more aggressiveness, unruliness, and externalizing symptoms (aggressiveness/unruliness) in late childhood (age 8 to 11) were associated with earlier spermarche. Earlier spermarche was associated with earlier age at dating women, more girlfriends, more likelihood of having had intercourse, and more intercourse partners. These results are considered together with alternative interpretations.