The Impact of Parental Monitoring On Sexual Risk Behaviors in a Juvenile-Justice Involved Cohort

The use of alcohol and marijuana are associated with increased sexual risk behaviors such as earlier sexual debut, greater number sexual partners, and inconsistent condom use among juvenile-justice involved adolescents. Studies on parental monitoring and supervision have shown a strong influence of living situation on these behaviors in the general population, but lack research within a juvenile-justice involved population. The current study examines the impact of living situation on several risk behaviors among a juvenile-justice involved cohort while examining race/ethnicity and gender as moderators. 460 adolescents in a juvenile detention center completed self-report questionnaires. Effects of living situation were found to be stronger among female and Hispanic adolescents. No effects were found between the relationship of living situation and alcohol use, marijuana use, or condom use. The study provides evidence that differing levels of parents in the home may influence risk behaviors in a juvenile-justice involved population, but needs to be examined in greater detail. PARENTAL MONITORING AND SEXUAL RISK 3 The Impact of Parental Monitoring On Sexual Risk Behaviors in a Juvenile-Justice Involved Cohort The use of alcohol and marijuana are positively correlated with increased sexual risk behaviors among adolescents; this association is stronger when looking at juvenile justice involved youth (Callahan, Montanaro, Magnan, & Bryan, 2013). These sexual risk behaviors include: earlier sexual debut, greater number of sexual partners, and lower rates of condom use. Some studies have shown that parental practices and supervision influences these behaviors, such that higher levels of parental monitoring results in lower engagement in risk behaviors (Borawski, Ievers-Landis, Lovegreen, & Trapl, 2003; Fagan, Lee, Antaramian, & Hawkins, 2011; Hirschi, 1969; Huang, Murphy, & Hser, 2011). The goal of this study is to examine whether parental monitoring influences the relationship between substance use and sexual risk in a sample of juvenile-justice involved youth. Alcohol use continues to be a growing problem among adolescents. Assessments have shown that 74.8% of high school seniors reported consuming at least one alcoholic beverage (Johnston, Bachman, & O’Malley, 1996). Alcohol use is even more prevalent among justice-involved adolescents, with around 88.7% reporting consuming alcohol. In addition to alcohol, marijuana use is common among adolescents, and again justice involved adolescents use marijuana at higher frequencies compared to the general population (Lebeau-Craven et al., 2003). Marijuana is the most frequently used substance within the population of criminally involved adolescents, followed by alcohol (NIJ, 2000). Frequency of intercourse is positively associated with the frequency of substance use in justice-involved adolescents (Callahan et al., 2013; Castrucci & Martin, 2002), and PARENTAL MONITORING AND SEXUAL RISK 4 with lower frequency of condom use. Furthermore, both alcohol and marijuana use are associated with a decline in condom use over time (Bryan et al., 2012; Schmeige, Levin, & Bryan 2009). Due perhaps in part to increased levels of substance use, juvenile justice involved youth display significantly higher levels of sexual risk behavior, resulting in increased levels of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and unplanned pregnancy (Teplin, Mericle, McClelland, & Abram, 2003). Individuals 15-25 years old have the highest risk for STIs, and account for nearly half of the 19 million new STIs each year (CDC, 2013). About 50% of new human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) cases are found in this age group, with higher rates in correctional populations (Wilson et al., 2010; Teplin et al., 2005). Among a sample of juvenile justice involved youth, only 8.4% of sexually experienced adolescents reported consistent condom use during sexual intercourse (Callahan et al., 2013). Criminological studies about substance use often discuss the idea that poor parenting may lead to increased drug use and delinquency (Fagen et al., 2010). Parental monitoring is described as active control and supervision of adolescents by the primary caregiver(s) which includes behaviors such as being aware of where children are, what behaviors they engage in, and the peers they associate with (Yabiku et al., 2010). The gender of the caregiver and relationship (biological, extended family, etc.) of the caregiver do not appear to moderate the association of parental monitoring and risky behavior. The influence appears to come from the parenting practices of the primary caregiver. Social control theories agree that parental monitoring and support are critical in controlling the delinquency of adolescents. In a study done by Borawski et al. (2003) PARENTAL MONITORING AND SEXUAL RISK 5 examining the role of parenting on adolescent risk behavior, they found that adolescents from two-parent homes reported higher levels of parental monitoring than those from one-parent homes. Within this study and others, authors have concluded that higher levels of parental monitoring were significantly associated with less sexual activity and lower rates of substance use (Borawski et al., 2003; Blum et. al, 2000). Other studies support Borawski et al.’s findings that unsupervised time increases risk of problem behaviors. (Yabiku et al., 2010; Hirschi, 1969; Fagen et al., 2010; Huang et al., 2011). The bulk of research on parental monitoring has been done with typical adolescents, while there is a relative lack of research on the impact of parental monitoring among juvenile justice-involved adolescents. Due to the higher level of substance use and sexual risk behaviors among justice involved adolescents, understanding the role of parental monitoring could be of great use for this population. A number of studies have shown that there are both gender-specific and ethnicspecific moderators on the influence of parental monitoring. Male adolescents have been found to have lower levels of parental monitoring than their female counterparts. (Huang et al., 2011). Both boys and girls who underwent high levels of parental monitoring were at a lower risk for early initiation of sexual activity (Oberlander et al., 2011). Although both gender’s benefit from supervision, females tend to receive more. These findings suggest a significant gender difference in how parents chose to monitor their children. Due to the difference in quantity of parental monitoring across genders, the impact of parental monitoring is likely to be more protective for girls and less protective for boys. Ethnicities differ in the values placed on the importance of family and parental behaviors. Societies and cultures place different emphasis on their expectations of PARENTAL MONITORING AND SEXUAL RISK 6 children, which translates into cultural variability in parenting practices (Roopnarine, 2005). Due to these varying degrees of familial practices, we can expect to see race/ethnic-specific differences in the influence of parental monitoring. Latino cultures value family closeness, social support and proximity to extended family members more so than other cultures (Yabiku et al., 2010). Tragresser et al. (2007) compared the levels of parental monitoring and its influences across three ethnic groups; African-American, Hispanic, and non-Hispanic white. The data showed that rates of parental monitoring were highest among African American youth. Additionally, the data suggested that parental monitoring has a stronger association with risk behaviors in African American and Hispanic youth compared to non-Hispanic white youth (Tragesser et al., 2007; Schroeder, Bulanda, Giordano, & Cernkovich 2010). Due to a variance in level of parental monitoring in families of different race/ethnicities, the impact of parental monitoring on risk behaviors is not likely to be equal across ethnic/racial groups. Current Study Overview Many gaps exist in the current literature on parental monitoring and adolescent risk behavior. First and foremost, the previous research has been done among the general population and has failed to consider high-risk populations, such as juvenile justice involved youth. Because juvenile justice involved youth have the highest rates of engaging in the risk behavior, it is important to address this sample directly. Furthermore, the possible moderating role of gender or race/ethnicity have yet to be examined in a sample of juvenile justice involved youth. The current study addresses these limitations in the existing research and attempts to move the literature on parental monitoring forward by focusing on a different PARENTAL MONITORING AND SEXUAL RISK 7 population. This sample represents a population of criminally involved youth that were detained at the time of participation. I will be examining variables of parental monitoring by comparing risk behaviors of participants who live with either both parents (mother and father), a single parent (mother or father), and other. Since 2 parent homes are associated with higher levels of parental monitoring, I expect to see less risk behavior among the 2 parent home group. Specifically, I will examine if having two parents at home serves as a protective factor in sexual history, condom use history, substance use history, and STI/HIV history. The aim of this study is to examine the association between parental monitoring and risk behaviors among justice involved youth in order to contribute to the literature for this high risk group of adolescents. If parental monitoring serves as a protective factor in fostering resiliency in this high-risk sample, society can better adapt methods of reducing risk outcomes such as STIs/HIV. If the data finds that gender or ethnicity moderates the association of parental monitoring to risk behavior, it may provide information for interventions to target such populations to help with the deterrence of risk behaviors. Bas