While delinquency has multiple causes, deviant peer affiliation is one of the strongest. In fact, a high proportion of violence, drug use, and other deviant behaviors are committed in groups, rather than in isolation. This article explores how practices within educational, mental health, juvenile justice, and community programs can lead to deviant…

In this study, two longitudinal models of early adolescent risky sexual behaviors (RSB) were compared using a pooled sample of 267 Canadian and Italian adolescents (55% females; 53% Canadians) assessed yearly from grade 8 to 10. We focused on parenting practices (monitoring, control, limit setting), adolescent problem behaviors (antisocial…

Studies reporting sociometric assessments based on nominations have been characterized by important methodological inconsistencies when conducted in the middle school context. The purpose of this study was to examine (1) the possibility of a response bias when participants are provided with a long roster sorted alphabetically, (2) the impact of…

Evidence supports the hypothesis that adolescent peer groups play a significant role in the genesis of youth antisocial behavior. A longstanding interest in research focused on individual differences in teen exposure to deviant peer groups is the notion that high-risk youth aggregate because of their common rejection within social contexts, such…

This study used Complier Average Causal Effect analysis (CACE; see G. Imbens & D. Rubin, 1997) to examine the impact of an adaptive approach to family intervention in the public schools on rates of substance use and antisocial behavior among students ages 11-17. Students were randomly assigned to a family-centered intervention (N = 998) in 6th…

Objective: Mothers' relational schemas (RSs) regarding their adolescents were assessed using the Family Affective Attitude Rating Scale for coding 5-minute speech samples. The internal consistency and validity of positive RS and negative RS scales were also evaluated. Method: Data were collected from a multiethnic subsample of early-starting…

A thorough understanding of how social relationships contribute to child and adolescent trajectories for antisocial behavior may be facilitated by: (a) ascertaining multiple relationship processes (e.g., warmth and reciprocity, coercion and deviancy training); (b) focusing on multiple relationships (e.g., with parents, peers, siblings, and…

A dynamic systems framework was applied to understand the influence of friendship on antisocial behavior from childhood (age 9-10) through adulthood (age 24-25) for Oregon Youth Study males (N = 206). Boys were videotaped interacting with a friend at ages 14, 16, and 18, and deviant content and interpersonal processes were independently coded.…

Considerable evidence supports the hypothesis that peer relationships influence the growth of problem behavior in youth. Developmental research consistently documents the high levels of covariation between peer and youth deviance, even controlling for selection effects. Ironically, the most common public interventions for deviant youth involve…

Examined the close friendships of 186 early adolescent boys in relation to antisocial behavior. Similarity was observed between the demographic characteristics and antisocial behavior of the boys and their close friends. Direct observations of interactions with close friends revealed a reliable correlation between antisocial behavior, directives,…

Compared boys reported to fight at home, at school, and those reported to fight in both settings (N=210) in terms of their behavior and family backgrounds. Results indicated that those who were reported to fight by both mothers and teachers scored substantially higher on measures of antisocial behavior. (LLL)

The association between boys' peer relations, antisocial behavior, academic skill deficits, and family ecology was examined. Two cohorts of boys and their families were interviewed, observed in the home, and assessed in school. (PCB)

Tested hypothesis that primary-influence processes in adolescent friendships are social interactional and that quality of friendship has little to do with development of delinquent behavior. Found that antisocial boys showed poor-quality friendships and low levels of relationship quality. (Author)

Premature autonomy describes a developmental dynamic where parents of high-risk adolescents reduce their involvement and guidance when confronted with challenges of problem behaviour and the influence of deviant friendships. This dynamic was tested on the sample of Oregon Youth Study boys (N=206), whose family management practices and friendships…

Assessed the characteristics that predicted the timing of first sexual intercourse in high-risk adolescents. Employed event history analyses and defined predictor variables using multimethod and multiagent assessments. Found that precocious sexual initiative can be understood using models of the etiology of other problem behavior, and that…