NCJ Number
214885
Journal
Journal of Adolescence Volume: 29 Issue: 3 Dated: June 2006 Pages: 459-464
Date Published
June 2006
Length
6 pages
Annotation
This study examined links between parental monitoring (mother and father), self-esteem, and delinquency among 95 Mexican-American male adolescents who were on probation under the juvenile justice system.
Abstract
Findings from this study and similar previous studies suggest that regardless of race/ethnicity, adolescents who perceive a lack of monitoring by their mothers or fathers were at risk for involvement in delinquency. The boys' perceptions of the level of parental monitoring was not significantly linked to their level of self esteem. Contrary to the findings of Lasko et al. (1996), which showed a negative relationship between self-esteem and delinquency (low self-esteem increased the risk for delinquent behavior), the current study found that the higher a Mexican-American boy's self-esteem, the more likely he was to be involved in delinquency. The 95 Mexican-American boys in this study ranged in age from 13 to 17 years and were under juvenile justice probation while attending a transition school for troubled youth in California. They were administered the Parental Monitoring Scale, which defined parental monitoring as the adolescent's perception of his parents' knowledge of his whereabouts, progress in school, social and extracurricular activities, and peer association. Self-esteem was measured with the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Inventory, and the Asocial Index-Jesness Inventory assessed personality traits, attitudes and perceptions, and behaviors in order to distinguish delinquents from nondelinquents. 1 table and 27 references