ERIC Number: EJ1094715
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2016-May
Pages: 26
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0044-118X
EISSN: N/A
Exploring the Meso-System: The Roles of Community, Family, and Peers in Adolescent Delinquency and Positive Youth Development
Smith, Emilie Phillips; Faulk, Monique; Sizer, Monteic A.
Youth & Society, v48 n3 p318-343 May 2016
Community contexts are important ecological settings related to problem behavior and positive youth development (PYD). While substantial work has focused on neighborhood disadvantage, the current study explores the role of community assets, specifically linkages to important institutional resources and people in those settings. These concepts are explored in a cross-sectional sample of African American and White, male and female adolescent offenders with an eye toward approaches to reducing further delinquency. The findings of confirmatory factor and path analyses demonstrate that personal relationships and linkages to important community resources including recreational, school, faith-based, extended-family, and work-related sources, are related not only to better family functioning but also to positive peer relations and indirectly to youth self-reliance. This study highlights the potential role of community networks and support in the lives of youthful offenders and their families, a population in need of more research identifying potential positive pathways of development.
Descriptors: Delinquency, Behavior Problems, Youth, Case Studies, Path Analysis, Peer Relationship, Networks, Role, Community Resources, Community Characteristics, African Americans, Whites, Family Role, Community Role, Likert Scales, Factor Analysis
SAGE Publications. 2455 Teller Road, Thousand Oaks, CA 91320. Tel: 800-818-7243; Tel: 805-499-9774; Fax: 800-583-2665; e-mail: journals@sagepub.com; Web site: http://sagepub.com
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Assessments and Surveys: Behavior Assessment System for Children
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A