Crosswhite, Jennifer M.
Kerpelman, Jennifer L.
Parenting and Children's Self-Control: Concurrent and Longitudinal Relations
Deviant Behavior 33,9 (October 2012): 715-737.
Also: http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/01639625.2011.647597
Cohort(s): Children of the NLSY79
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Keyword(s): Behavior Problems Index (BPI); Discipline; Home Observation for Measurement of Environment (HOME); Modeling, Structural Equation; Parent-Child Interaction; Parental Influences; Parenting Skills; Self-Regulation/Self-Control;

The purpose of the current study was to examine the impact parenting has on the development of self-control, both before and after the general theory of crime suggests self-control is established. Using the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, longitudinal data from mothers with children ages 8–9 and 12–13 were analyzed via structural equation modeling. Results demonstrated an overall environment of effective parenting is associated with (1) self-control before and after it is theoretically established and (2) parenting constructs outside the conceptualization of the theory. Further, the stability of self-control may matter more than parenting in the longitudinal development of self-control.

Hope, Trina L.
Chapple, Constance L.
Maternal Characteristics, Parenting, and Adolescent Sexual Behavior; the Role of Self-Control
Deviant Behavior 26,1 (January/February 2005): 25-46
Cohort(s): Children of the NLSY79, NLSY79, NLSY79 Young Adult
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Keyword(s): Adolescent Behavior; Behavior Problems Index (BPI); Delinquency/Gang Activity; Parenthood; Parenting Skills; Self-Regulation/Self-Control; Sexual Behavior;

Permission to reprint the abstract has not been received from the publisher.

Gottfredson and Hirschi's general theory of crime has been extensively tested by researchers in the field of criminology, and measures of self-control have been shown to predict crime, delinquency, and deviance. With few exceptions, however, the theory has not been applied to the study of adolescent sexual behavior. Using data from the 1979 National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY79) and the Children of the NLSY79, this research explores the direct and indirect effects of parenting and self-control on adolescent sexual behavior. Self-control predicts engagement in sexual activity, the number of sex partners, and relationship to last sex partner. Self-control also mediates the relationship between certain parental behaviors and adolescent sexual behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Jennings, Wesley G.
Higgins, George E.
Akers, Ronald L.
Khey, David N.
Dobrow, Jason
Examining the Influence of Delinquent Peer Association on the Stability of Self-Control in Late Childhood and Early Adolescence: Toward an Integrated Theoretical Model
Deviant Behavior 34,5 (May 2013): 407-422.
Also: http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/01639625.2012.735903
Cohort(s): Children of the NLSY79
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
Keyword(s): Adolescent Behavior; Behavior Problems Index (BPI); Behavior, Antisocial; Behavioral Differences; Delinquency/Gang Activity; Illegal Activities; Peers/Peer influence/Peer relations; Self-Regulation/Self-Control;

Gottfredson and Hirschi's (1990) general theory of crime and Akers' social learning theory (1998) have been given considerable attention in the criminological literature. Despite the empirical support for these theories, it is commonplace to test these theories as competing or conflicting theoretical frameworks. Using data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY79) (N = 629), we examine two related research questions: (1) is self-control relatively stable in late childhood and early adolescence? and (2) does delinquent peer association influence the stability of self-control in late childhood and early adolescence? The results suggest that perhaps a more theoretically integrated approach (social learning and self-control synergistic theory, SSST) is plausible, rather than discussing these two theories as distinct and competing frameworks. Theoretical implications and study limitations are also discussed.