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Early Adolescent Delinquency

The Role of Parents and Best Friends

Ron H. J. Scholte

Geertjan Overbeek

Rutger C. M. E. Engels

Radboud University Nijmegen, the Netherlands

This three-wave longitudinal study investigates the main and interaction effects of parenting dimensions (i.e., support, monitoring, and psychological control) and best friend delinquency on adolescent delinquent behavior. The sample consists of 433 Dutch adolescents who had reciprocal friendships within the first year of secondary education. Structural equation modeling analyses reveal that adolescents' delinquent behavior influenced their best friends' delinquency but not vice versa. Higher levels of parental support and monitoring, as well as lower levels of psychological control, are associated with decreased levels of adolescent delinquency. Multigroup analyses show no moderating effects of parenting on the longitudinal associations between best friend delinquency and adolescent delinquent behavior.

Key Words: delinquency • parenting • peers • early adolescence

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