Levels Of Parental Monitoring Research Articles

Perceived Access and Parental Monitoring as Moderators of Impulsivity and Marijuana Use Among Adolescents.

The social and political climate regarding marijuana use has been changing in the US over the past decade. Research suggests that many adolescents report relatively easy access to marijuana and perceptions that recreational use involves minimal harm despite a growing body of research implicating the deleterious effects of use on cognitive and psychological development. Not surprisingly, prevalence rates have been rising in recent years, making it important to identify risk and protective factors associated with adolescent marijuana use. We tested a 3-way interaction model designed to (a) examine the relationship between behavioral impulsivity and marijuana use in adolescents, and (b) evaluate the roles of perceived access and parental monitoring as moderators of this relationship. High school students (N=498, M age =15.7, 53% female, 77% White) completed an anonymous self-report assessment examining substance use, perceived access, and psychosocial factors related to substance use (i.e., behavioral impulsivity and parental monitoring). Results indicated that higher levels of impulsivity, greater access, and reduced parental monitoring were related to marijuana use. Significant moderating effects were found for perceived access and parental monitoring, such that use was greater for adolescents who perceived that marijuana was easier to acquire and for those with lower levels of parental monitoring. Among individuals with greater levels of impulsivity, parental monitoring reduced the impact of perceived access. Overall, results highlight risk and protective factors related to adolescent marijuana use and indicate that parental monitoring can be an effective means for reducing consumption.

Gender Differences in Sexual and Reproductive Health Protective and Risk Factors of Batswana Adolescents: Implications for Parent and Adolescent Interventions.

Adolescents in sub-Saharan Africa and in Botswana in particular continue to bear the brunt of the HIV epidemic. This analysis assessed gender differences among theory-based sexual and reproductive health protective and risk factors in a cross-sectional sample of 228 Batswana adolescents. Incongruence between preferred and actual sources of sexual information and several important gender differences in parent-adolescent relationships, psychosocial influences, and adolescent sexual behaviors were identified. Parents were the fourth most common source of information about sex; yet, over three-quarters of adolescents preferred to have parents teach them about sex. Boys reported more positive relationships with their parents and girls reported more positive attitudes toward transactional sex. Both boys and girls reported similarly low levels of parental monitoring, parental communication, and parental responsiveness, all of which are important protective factors. These findings suggest interventions should address these gender differences and consider offering parallel interventions for adolescents and their parents in Botswana.

When parents supply alcohol to their children: Exploring associations with drinking frequency, alcohol-related harms, and the role of parental monitoring

BackgroundYouth obtain alcohol from many sources, including friends, siblings, parents and other adults. Whether parental supply, relative to other sources, is associated with experiencing a negative alcohol-related outcome is an area of considerable debate. Less well understood is whether the observed association is further contextualized by level of parental monitoring of the child. ObjectivesThis study has two main objectives: 1) determine if there is a relationship between parental supply, drinking frequency, and alcohol-related harms among youth; and 2) assess whether parental monitoring moderates this relationship. MethodsParticipants were drawn from the 2012 Student Drug Use Survey in Canada’s Atlantic Provinces, an anonymous cross-sectional survey of high school students (ages 15–19 years). Adjusted regression models assessed the association between drinking frequency, experiencing alcohol-related harms, and four different sources of supply. Additional analyses stratified on levels of parental monitoring. ResultsRelative to receiving alcohol from friends, parental supply was associated with lower odds of experiencing any alcohol-related harm (AOR 0.42; 95% CI 0.28-0.61) and loss of control (AOR = 0.42; 95% CI 0.29-0.62). Drinking frequency did not differ by source of supply. Associations between parental supply and harm were absent among youth reporting low levels of parental monitoring. ConclusionsYouth who receive alcohol from parents’ report fewer alcohol-related harms relative to those who obtain their alcohol from friends, despite no observed differences in drinking frequency. Understanding how parents may help to minimize experiences of alcohol-related harm among youth beyond the simple promotion of abstinence from drinking is warranted.

Associations Between Croatian Adolescents’ Use of Sexually Explicit Material and Sexual Behavior: Does Parental Monitoring Play a Role?

The use of sexually explicit material (SEM) has become a part of adolescent sexual socialization, at least in the Western world. Adolescent and young people's SEM use has been associated with risky sexual behaviors, which has recently resulted in policy debates about restricting access to SEM. Such development seems to suggest a crisis of the preventive role of parental oversight. Based on the Differential Susceptibility to Media Effects Model, this study assessed the role of parental monitoring in the context of adolescent vulnerability to SEM-associated risky or potentially adverse outcomes (sexual activity, sexual aggressiveness, and sexting). Using an online sample of Croatian 16-year-olds (N=1265) and structural equation modeling approach, parental monitoring was found consistently and negatively related to the problematic behavioral outcomes, regardless of participants' gender. While SEM use was related to sexual experience and sexting, higher levels of parental monitoring were associated with less frequent SEM use and lower acceptance of sexual permissiveness. Despite parents' fears about losing the ability to monitor their adolescent children's lives in the Internet era, there is evidence that parental engagement remains an important protective factor.

The Role of Parental Monitoring in Mediating the Link Between Adolescent ADHD Symptoms and Risk-Taking Behavior

Objective: ADHD in adolescents and low level of parental monitoring have been associated with increased risk-taking behavior. The present study examined whether parental knowledge of the child’s whereabouts mediates the correlations between adolescent ADHD symptoms and risk-taking behavior. Method: Ninety-two adolescents and their parents completed questionnaires assessing perceptions of parents’ monitoring, engagement in risk-taking behaviors, and ADHD symptoms. Results: Greater engagement in risk-taking behavior correlated with higher levels of ADHD symptoms and decreased parental monitoring. Mediation analysis revealed both direct effect of ADHD symptoms on risk-taking behavior and an indirect effect mediated by level of parental knowledge. Conclusion: These findings suggest that parental knowledge is negatively affected by the presence of ADHD symptoms, and may in turn lead to risk-taking behavior. The findings emphasize the need to target parenting and in particular parental knowledge of the child’s whereabouts to reduce risk-taking behaviors among youth with ADHD.

Associations Between Parental BMI and the Family Nutrition and Physical Activity Environment in a Community Sample.

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between parental BMI and the family environment and determine if differences exist in child diet and physical activity related parenting behaviors by parental BMI in a community sample of families recruited through elementary schools in a local school district. We found an association between parental BMI category and family nutrition and physical activity (FNPA) score. Families with an underweight or normal weight parent had a larger proportion (64.3%) of high (indicating a healthier family environment) FNPA scores and families with an overweight or obese parent had a smaller proportion (45.2%) of high FNPA scores (χ 2=5.247, P = 0.022). Families with a parent who was overweight or obese had 2.18 times the odds (95% CI 1.11-4.27) of being in the low FNPA ("less healthy" environment) group. Further, underweight/normal weight parents reported higher levels of monitoring of child diet (Z=-3.652, P < 0.0001), higher levels of parental monitoring of child physical activity (Z=-3.471, p < 0.001), and higher levels of parental limit setting related to child sedentary activities compared to overweight/obese parents (Z=-2.443, P = 0.01). Parent BMI and parenting behaviors are known to have a major impact on childhood obesity. In this study, lower parent BMI and authoritative parenting behaviors were associated with a less obesogenic home environment and a positive parenting style related to child eating and physical activity behaviors.

Parental Monitoring and Alcohol Use Across Adolescence in Black and White Girls: A Cross-Lagged Panel Mixture Model.

The link between parental monitoring and adolescent alcohol use is well established, but the directionality of this relationship is somewhat elusive. The literature suggests that parental engagement serves a protective function with respect to alcohol use, but that parental monitoring may also diminish in response to recurrent risk behavior. The lower rate of alcohol use despite evidence of lower levels of parental monitoring in Black versus White youth raises the question of for whom and under what conditions parental monitoring and alcohol use are associated. Data were drawn from a community sample of 1,634 female adolescents (954 Black, 680 White) from 4 age cohorts, assessed annually in an accelerated longitudinal design. This study uses data spanning ages 12 to 17; parental monitoring and alcohol use were assessed via self-report, while demographic and adolescent psychosocial risk factors were derived from parent reports when the girls were age 12. An autoregressive cross-lagged panel mixture model was used to identify discrete patterns of parental monitoring and alcohol use associations across adolescence, and psychosocial factors that differentiate between them. Two discrete patterns of codeveloping alcohol use and parental monitoring emerged: one with stable bidirectional and autoregressive links (79%) and another differing from the majority profile in terms of the absence (alcohol use to parental monitoring) and direction (parental monitoring to alcohol use) of cross-construct influences (21%). Those in the minority profile were, at age 12, more likely to have received public assistance, resided in single-parent households, reached puberty, and manifest more severe conduct problems. Identifying subgroups of girls with distinct patterns of codeveloping alcohol use and parental monitoring is particularly relevant to the development and implementation of family-level interventions, both in terms of targeting those with known demographic risk factors, and tailoring programs to address behavioral correlates, such as conduct problems.

Social Media and Sexual Behavior Among Adolescents: Is there a link?

BackgroundAdolescent sexual risk taking and its consequences remain a global public health concern. Empirical evidence on the impact that social media has on sexual health behaviors among youth is sparse.ObjectiveThe study aimed to examine the relationship between social media and the change in sexual risk over time and whether parental monitoring moderates this relationship.MethodsThis study comprised a sample of 555 Latino youth aged 13-19 years from Maryland, United States completing baseline and follow-up surveys. Mixed-effects linear regression was used to examine the relationship between social media and the change in sexual risk over time and whether parental monitoring moderated the relationship.ResultsSexual risk behaviors significantly increased between baseline (T1) and follow up (T2) (mean=0.432 vs mean=0.734, P<.001). Youth sending more than 100 text messages per day had significantly higher sexual risk scores (beta=1.008, P<.001) but significantly larger declines in sexual risk scores for higher levels of parental monitoring (beta=−.237, P=.009).ConclusionsAlthough adolescents exchange SMS at high rates, parental monitoring remains vital to parent-child relationships and can moderate SMS frequency and sexual risk behaviors, despite parental influence diminishing and peer pressure and social influences increasing during adolescence.

The relationship between the Parental monitoring levels and Infant’s feeling of efficacy and Literacy of the Informational Communication Technology

The relationship between the Parental monitoring levels and Infant’s feeling of efficacy and Literacy of the Informational Communication Technology

Cyberbullying and Parental Monitoring Among Secondary School Students

This study examined the association of cyber bullying behaviour with parental monitoring of secondary school students. The sample was 600 school students selected from four different states of south India. A stratified random sampling technique was employed. Measure of cyber bullying and online aggression survey by Hinduja &amp; Patchin (2009) and the Parental Monitoring Scale (Small and Kerns, 1993) to respondent. Data collected were analyzed using t-test and correlation. The results indicate that students with low or less level of parental monitoring are more involved in cyberbullying then the other students.

Effects of the serotonin transporter gene, sensitivity of response to alcohol, and parental monitoring on risk for problem alcohol use.

The serotonin transporter-linked polymorphic region (5-HTTLPR) of the serotonin transporter gene (SLC6A4) has been previously associated with alcohol-related risk. Most findings point to short (S) allele carriers being at increased risk for negative alcohol outcomes relative to long allele homozygotes, although some work indicates a more complex relationship. The current prospective study aimed to clarify how and under what circumstances variations in 5-HTTLPR transmit risk for various alcohol-related outcomes. Participants were 218 adolescents and young adults (29% female) enrolled in the Michigan Longitudinal Study. We tested a moderated mediation model with 5-HTTLPR as the predictor, Self-Rating of the Effects of Alcohol (SRE) score as the mediator, alcohol-related outcomes as the dependent variables, parental monitoring as the moderator of the SRE to alcohol outcomes path, and prior drinks, sex, age, and body mass index as covariates. Four alcohol-related outcomes were tested. The S allele was associated with higher SRE scores (i.e., lower response to alcohol). Parental monitoring was a significant moderator: At low levels of parental monitoring, higher SRE scores predicted more drinks consumed and binge drinking episodes. At high levels of monitoring, higher SRE scores were significantly related to fewer alcohol-related problems. Findings suggest that one mechanism by which 5-HTTLPR variation transmits alcohol-related risk is through level of response to alcohol. Furthermore, the strength and direction of this effect varied by level of parental monitoring, indicating that even in the presence of genetic and physiological vulnerability, parents can influence the likelihood of offspring developing problematic alcohol-related behaviors.

A model of parental distress and factors that mediate its link with parental monitoring of youth diabetes care, adherence, and glycemic control.

Parental monitoring of adolescents' diabetes self-care is associated with better adherence and glycemic control (A1c). A number of parent-level factors are associated with higher levels of parental monitoring, including lower levels of parental distress (depressive symptoms, stress, anxiety), as well as higher levels of parental self-efficacy for diabetes management and authoritative parenting. Often studied in isolation, these factors may be best considered simultaneously as they are interrelated and are associated with parental monitoring and youth adherence. Structural equation modeling with a cross-sectional sample of 257 parent/youth (aged 11-14) dyads: (a) examined a broad model of parental factors (i.e., parental distress, parental diabetes self-efficacy, authoritative parenting), and (b) assessed their relation to parental monitoring, youth adherence, and A1c. Post hoc analyses of variance (ANOVAs) evaluated clinical implications of daily parental monitoring. Parental distress was not related directly to parental monitoring. Instead less distress related indirectly to more monitoring via higher parental self-efficacy and more authoritative parenting which, in turn, related to better adherence and A1c. Higher parental self-efficacy also related directly to better youth adherence and then to better A1c. Clinically, more parental monitoring related to more daily blood glucose checks and to better A1c (8.48% vs. 9.17%). A broad model of parent-level factors revealed more parental distress was linked only indirectly to less monitoring via lower parental self-efficacy and less authoritative parenting. Behaviorally, more parental monitoring related to better adherence and to clinically better A1c in adolescents. Further study of parent-level factors that relate to parental distress and monitoring of adherence appears warranted. (PsycINFO Database Record

The longitudinal effects of influence of parental attachment and emotion regulation on Internet delinquency in early adolescence

ABSTRACTThe purpose of this study was to identify the longitudinal influence of parental attachment and emotion regulation on changes in Internet delinquency. This study used the Korean Youth Panel Survey (KYPS) data, in which 2,844 school-age children were annually assessed from Grade 4 in 2004 to Grade 8 in 2008 in South Korea. Latent growth models were used to examine developmental trajectories of Internet delinquency, parental attachment, and emotion regulation longitudinally. This study showed that adolescents experience an increase in Internet delinquency over the fourth year and a decline in the fifth year. The initial level of parental monitoring had significant effects on the initial level of emotion regulation. In addition, the initial level of parental attachment was associated with a slower rate of acceleration of Internet delinquency across time. The study findings indicate that parental attachment influences Internet delinquency among Korean adolescents. The practice implications of the findings are discussed in terms of Internet delinquency reduction efforts.

Family Factors and Adolescent Problem Drinking in a High-Risk Urban Peruvian Neighborhood

ABSTRACTBackground: Family relationships are widely recognized as playing a role in adolescent alcohol use. Although family relationships and parenting vary by culture, limited research has explored these relationships in Latin America. Objectives: We sought to determine which family factors are associated with adolescent alcohol use in Callao, Peru. Methods: Data come from a cross-sectional survey conducted in a public secondary school in Callao, Peru in 2007. A total of 180 11th grade students are included in the analysis. Our main outcome measure was problem drinking, defined as self-report of having ever consumed beer, wine, spirits, or hard alcohol to a point of drunkenness. Logistic regression was used to determine if odds of problem drinking varied by level of parental monitoring (knowledge of activities and whereabouts), positive family relationships, or family conflict, while controlling for demographic and peer variables. Results: Low levels of parental monitoring and low levels of positive family relationships were each associated with significantly higher odds of lifetime problem drinking in analyses adjusted for deviant peer affiliation along with sociodemographic variables (odds ratio (OR) = 4.2; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.3–13.5; OR = 4.4; 95% CI: 1.5–13.0, respectively). Although family conflict was associated with elevated odds of lifetime problem drinking, this did not reach significance (adjusted OR = 2.01; 95% CI: 0.8–5.1). Conclusions/Importance: Interventions designed to prevent adolescent alcohol use in urban Peru may benefit from promoting positive family interactions and parental monitoring skills.

Parenting as a Protective Factor against Criminogenic Settings? Interaction Effects between Three Aspects of Parenting and Unstructured Socializing in Disordered Areas

Objectives: We examined the extent to which different aspects of parenting are able to moderate the association between spending time unstructured socializing (US) in urban areas with high disorder and adolescent delinquency. Methods: We used detailed data on time use, disorder in neighborhoods, parenting, and delinquency among 603 adolescents (aged 11–17 at T1) from the study of peers, activities, and neighborhoods, a two-wave longitudinal study with an interval of two years between measurements. Longitudinal multilevel analyses were used to examine interactions effects between parenting aspects and mean differences as well as individual changes in time spent unstructured socializing in areas with high disorder. Results: We did not find between-person level interaction effects between parenting and time spent in criminogenic settings. Our cross-level analyses, however, indicated that levels of parental monitoring as well as the quality of the parent–adolescent relationship mitigated the effects of changes in time spent in criminogenic settings. Conclusions: Whether increases in time spent in criminogenic settings are related to increases in delinquency seems to be conditional on the level of parental monitoring and the quality of the parent–adolescent relationship. If these aspects of parenting are sufficient, changes in time spent in criminogenic settings are not necessarily detrimental.

A closer look at school bonding among African American adolescents in low-income communities: A latent class analysis.

Positive school bonding is a significant precursor to students' school success. However, African American youth report lower school success compared with their White counterparts. This study examined correlates of school bonding among 633 African American youth who were recruited from community settings in Chicago. Major findings indicated that negative peer norms, exposure to community violence, and poor mental health were negatively correlated with school bonding, while parental monitoring, positive self-regard, and future orientation were correlated with higher school motivation. Students classified as having high or moderate school bonding were more likely to live with both parents, experience higher levels of parental monitoring, and exhibit positive self-regard. Implications are discussed in view of these findings.

The Effect of Sleep Duration on Youth School Adjustment Mediated by Parenting Behavior

Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between sleep duration and school adjustment of elementary-, middle-, high-school youth and to verify the mediating effects of parenting behavior. Methods: We analyzed the data from Wave 4 of the first-grade panel of elementary school and Waves 1 and 4 of the first-grade panel of middle school in Korean Children and Youth Panel Survey (KCYPS), including 1,703 fourth graders, 2,119 seventh graders, and 2,108 tenth graders. Multiple regression was used for the data analyses. Results: The results of this study were as follows. First, longer sleep duration was associated with a higher level of school adjustment in fourth grade. In contrast, longer sleep duration was associated with a lower level of school adjustment in seventh and tenth grades. Second, longer sleep duration was related to a higher level of discipline through reasoning in fourth grade. However, longer sleep duration was related to a lower level of parental monitoring in seventh and tenth grades. Third, the relationship between sleep duration and school adjustment was mediated by parenting behavior. Discipline through reasoning had a mediating effect in fourth grade, but the mediating effect of parental monitoring was found in seventh and tenth grades. Conclusion: These results suggest a differentiated approach on sleep duration in accordance with developmental stage and the need for parent education. Keywords: sleep duration, school adjustment, parenting behavior, parental monitoring, overprotection, discipline through reasoning

Social context, family process, and Turkish boys’ pathway to incarceration: an application of the age-graded theory of informal social control

ABSTRACTAlthough the juvenile delinquency problem in Turkey has become increasingly visible in the last decade, existing research on Turkish youth convicted of delinquency is still in its early stages. The purpose of this study was to apply the age-graded theory of informal social control that was developed by Sampson and Laub to the Turkish context, and to explore the role of family processes that lead young men to prison. Data are from in-depth interviews with 30 convicted juveniles in a juvenile prison. Data analysis highlighted the negative effects of specific family processes such as youth’s lack of attachment to their parents, which may result from harsh or erratic methods of discipline, and low levels of parental monitoring. The findings suggest that it is essential to implement family-oriented interventions to prevent and control serious delinquency.

Does parental monitoring and disapproval explain variations in alcohol use among adolescents from different countries of birth?

This study investigated the extent to which parental monitoring and parental disapproval of alcohol use account for the association between country of birth and adolescent alcohol use. The sample consisted of 10 273 adolescents from grades 7 (Mean age = 12.5 years), 9 (14.5 years) and 11 (16.4 years) in Victoria, Australia. Participants completed a questionnaire during class time. Mediation analyses were performed to examine the extent to which parental monitoring and parental disapproval of alcohol use accounted for variations in past 30 day alcohol use between Australian-born and immigrant adolescents. Alcohol use in the past 30 days ranged from 8.0% to 44.4% for participants from different countries/regions of birth. Those born in Asia (odds ratio 0.20-0.51, P < 0.05) and Africa (odds ratio 0.45, P < 0.01) were much less likely to have consumed alcohol compared to those born in Australia. Adolescents from these two regions (except for Western Asia) reported higher levels of parental monitoring and parental disapproval of alcohol use (P < 0.05). Higher levels of parental monitoring and parental disapproval of alcohol use partially mediated the association between birth place and alcohol use (P < 0.05). There were large variations in alcohol use between Australian-born and immigrant adolescents from different countries/regions. Adolescents from Asia or Africa were much less likely to consume alcohol, and this protective effect was partially accounted for by parental monitoring and disapproval of alcohol use.[Chan GCK, Kelly AB, Connor JP, Hall WD, Young RM, Williams JW. Does parental monitoring and disapproval explain variations in alcohol use among adolescents from different countries of birth? Drug Alcohol Rev 2016;35:741-749].

Work It Out Together: Preliminary Efficacy of a Parent and Adolescent DVD and Workbook Intervention on Adolescent Sexual and Substance Use Attitudes and Parenting Behaviors.

The purpose of the current study was to test an interactive DVD and workbook specifically designed for African-American parents and adolescents (ages 13-18), based on an efficacious face-to-face intervention, to address key factors associated with risk. A total of 170 parent-adolescent dyads were enrolled and randomly assigned to receive either the "Work It Out Together" DVD or a General Health Promotion DVD (HP). Parents and adolescents completed measures of HIV knowledge, self-efficacy, and parenting behaviors. Immediately after receiving the Work It Out Together intervention, parents and adolescents demonstrated higher HIV knowledge and greater HIV prevention self-efficacy. Three months after receiving the Work It Out Together intervention, parents and adolescents reported higher levels of parental monitoring and sexually active adolescents reported higher levels of condom use self-efficacy and a lower rate of recent sex. These outcomes provide preliminary evidence that the "Work It Out Together" DVD impacted individual attitudes and protective parenting behaviors.