Supportive parenting moderates the effect of discrimination upon anger, hostile view of relationships, and violence among African American boys.
Studies have shown that exposure to discrimination increases the probability that African American adolescents will engage in delinquent behavior, especially acts of violence. The present study extended this research by examining the extent to which supportive parenting buffers a youth from these deleterious consequences of discrimination. Analyses based upon two waves of data from a sample of 332 African American adolescent males and their caretakers supported this hypothesis. Further the results indicated that there are two avenues whereby supportive parenting reduces the probability that discrimination will lead to violence. First, supportive parenting decreases the chances that discrimination will lead to anger and a hostile view of relationships. Second, supportive parenting lowers the risk that anger or a hostile view of relationships, when they develop, will result in violence.
Simons
Ronald L
RL
Department of Sociology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA. rsimons@uga.edu
Simons
Leslie Gordon
LG
Burt
Callie Harbin
CH
Drummund
Holli
H
Stewart
Eric
E
Brody
Gene H
GH
Gibbons
Frederick X
FX
Cutrona
Carolyn
C
D000293:Adolescent; D000294:Adolescent Behavior / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000523:psychology; D001741:Black or African American / Q000523:psychology*; D000786:Anger; D002648:Child; D006791:Hostility; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D010287:Parent-Child Relations / Q000208:ethnology; D016487:Parenting / Q000208:ethnology / Q000523:psychology*; D011287:Prejudice; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012307:Risk Factors; D012931:Social Environment; D012944:Social Support; D014481:United States; D014754:Violence / Q000208:ethnology / Q000517:prevention & control*