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In Search of Structure: A Theory-Based, Mixed Methods Examination of Parental Structure in Families of Young Adolescents

Research
June 2008
May 2012
$388,570
Wendy Grolnick
Clark University
Among European-American and Latino families, what role does parental structuring play in the development of 12 to 14 year old children’s competence, achievement, and adjustment? Among dimensions of parenting, parental structure has not been adequately studied as it relates to youth outcomes. The researchers will measure six dimensions of structure in parental practices (parents provide clear/consistent communication of rules and expectations, opportunities to succeed by meeting or exceeding expectations, predictability and consistency, positive informational feedback, rationales for their actions, and ultimate authority) across six domains relevant to young adolescents (homework, grades, curfew, bedtime, after-school activities, and activities when unsupervised). This sequential mixed-method, two-wave (before and after the transition) longitudinal study will examine how parental structure relates to competence, adjustment, and achievement over the transition to junior high school. It will also examine the interactions of differing cultural contexts and parental structure. The study includes 250 Worcester, Massachusetts-area 6th and 7th grade students from primarily low-income schools and their mothers (mainly European-American and Latino, specifically Puerto Rican and Dominican), who volunteer to participate in the study. This project focuses on the Foundation’s interest in how important social processes in families work, and how they impact early adolescents. It also promises to add an important dimension to our understanding of family functioning in different cultural contexts.
Focus Areas of this Grant
12 - 13
Cultural Contexts and Influences, Family/Family Policy
Male, Female
Urban
Asian, Black or African American, Latino or Hispanic, White, Other Race/Ethnicity
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