Adolescent Mothering and Preschool Behavior Problems

摘要

Children of adolescent mothers are at greater risk for the development ofbehavior problems than are children of adult mothers, even when factors related to social status are controlled. More research is needed, however, because most studies of adolescent mothering and child outcomes do not focus on the largest and most hereogeneous subgroup, which is white adolescents. Births to white adolescents outnumber births to nonwhite adolescents, and white adolescents have a range of socioeconomic backgrounds. These individuals can be expected to show wide variations in adaptation, but little is known about their parenting and their children's outcome after infancy. The study followed 114 adolescent mother-infant pairs with known infant attachment classifications at two assessments in the preschool years. The findings confirm that children of adolescent mothers are at greater risk for developing externalizing problems than are children from the general population. Regression analyses revealed that infant attachment security, maternal negative affect measured in preschool, and preschool attachment security all significantly predicted externalizing problems and conduct problems in preschool. Analyses conducted separately by sex suggested that there may be different factors that predict risk status for boys and girls of adolescent mothers.