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The nature of the association between parental rejection and delinquent behavior

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Abstract

A panel design with approximately 300 adolescents was employed to investigate the relationship between parental rejection and delinquency. Previous studies have failed to control for potentially confounding family factors and have ignored the possibility that the causal priority is from delinquency to parental rejection, rather than the reverse. Parental rejection continued to show a moderate association with delinquency after relevant controls were introduced. The results were the same across sexes. LISREL was employed to estimate the parameters of the reciprocal relationship between parental rejection and delinquency. Analysis indicated that the predominant causal flow is from parental rejection to delinquency.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Florida State University, Florida, USA

    Ronald L. Simons Ph. D., sociology (Professor)

  2. Department of Sociology, Iowa State University, 50011, Ames, Iona

    Ronald L. Simons Ph. D., sociology (Professor)

  3. School of Social Work, University of Wisconsin, 53706, Madison

    Joan F. Robertson Ph. D., social work (Professor) & William R. Downs Ph. D., social work (Assistant Professor)

  4. School of Social Work, State University of New York at Buffalo, 14214, Buffalo, New York

    William R. Downs Ph. D., social work (Assistant Professor)

Authors
  1. Ronald L. Simons Ph. D., sociology
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  2. Joan F. Robertson Ph. D., social work
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  3. William R. Downs Ph. D., social work
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Additional information

Research interests: the etiology of adolescent depression, substance abuse, and delinquency; identification of factors which influence parenting practices.

Research interests: the causes, treatment, and prevention of adolescent depression and substance abuse.

Research interests: causes of adolescent and adult substance abuse; antecedents, and consequences of domestic violence.

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Simons, R.L., Robertson, J.F. & Downs, W.R. The nature of the association between parental rejection and delinquent behavior. J Youth Adolescence 18, 297–310 (1988). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02139043

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02139043

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