A Study on the Moderating Effect of Family Functioning on the Relationship between Deviant Peer Affiliation and Delinquency among Chinese Adolescents

Abstract

This study examined the interaction effect between family functioning and delinquent peer association on delinquent behavior in a sample of 534 adolescents from five middle schools in Shenzhen, the People's Republic of China. The results showed that both exposure to delinquent peers and family functioning had significant main effects on delinquency, and family functioning significantly buffered the negative effect of association with deviant peers on delinquency. Further analyses using the five subscales of family functioning demonstrated that family harmony and parental concern were significantly predictive of delinquency, and harmony, parental concern and control significantly moderated the risk of affiliating with deviant peers. This study suggested that harmonious family environment with high levels of parental concern and parental control were effective in alleviating the negative impact of deviant peer association on delinquent behavior in the Chinese context.

Deviant peer affiliation as a mediating variable in the relationship between family cohesion and adaptability and internet addiction among adolescents

“…Dishion et al ( 2012 ) found that weak family ties (e.g., high levels of family conflict, poor family relationships) can lead young people to engage in risky behaviors with peers. Conversely, Gao et al ( 2013 ) reported that positive family functioning moderated the risk of deviant peer affiliation. Others have suggested that unity among family members and the family power structure are unique contributions to positive peer affiliation choices of their adolescent children (Gao et al, 2013 ; Liu et al, 2020 ; Salimi & Hosseini, 2016 ).…”

“…Conversely, Gao et al ( 2013 ) reported that positive family functioning moderated the risk of deviant peer affiliation. Others have suggested that unity among family members and the family power structure are unique contributions to positive peer affiliation choices of their adolescent children (Gao et al, 2013 ; Liu et al, 2020 ; Salimi & Hosseini, 2016 ). Hirschi ( 1969 ) asserted that adolescents from healthy functioning families with effective communication and positive family relationships seem not to affiliate with deviant peers.…”

Deviant Peers and Adolescent Risky Behaviors: The Protective Effect of Nonverbal Display of Parental Warmth

“…For example, longitudinal studies conducted with pre‐ to early adolescents showed that positive parenting and parent–child relationships mitigate the influence of peers on various types of risky behaviors (Jaccard, Blanton, & Dodge, ; Vitaro, Brendgen, & Tremblay, ). Similarly, in a sample of Chinese adolescents, low family conflict and high parental concern and caring lessened the association between affiliation with deviant peers and delinquency (Gao, Yu, & Ng, ). Related literature shows that nurturant/involved parenting moderates associations from neighborhood environment to deviant peers affiliation (Brody et al., ).…”

The Relationship of Identity Styles and Attitude toward Delinquency with Delinquent Behavior of Adolescents

“…Because most delinquent adolescents had family members with criminal background, many researchers (Cassidy, 2011;Gao, Yu, & Kin, 2013;Ekpo & Ajake, 2013) reported that family can play a significant role in creating positive/negative attitude toward delinquency in adolescents. Modeling and learning different types of behavior in family have a significant impact on adolescents' attitude toward delinquency and crime as well as anti-social behaviors.…”