Citation
Berger, Amanda & Hofferth, Sandra L. (2014). Maternal parenting style during adolescence and number of sexual partners in young adulthood. 2014 Add Health Users Conference. Bethesda, MD.Abstract
Young adults have high rates of sexually transmitted infections, which are attributable to high rates of sexual risktaking such as having multiple sex partners. Parenting style has been linked with youth's sexual risk-taking, but few studies have examined the relationship between parenting style and multiple sex partners, and none have examined the effect of parenting style on multiple sex partners in young adulthood. Using Waves I, II, and III of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, we regressed lifetime and past year sex partners at Wave III on maternal parenting style at Wave I (using adolescents' reports of maternal warmth and control). Because parenting style is linked with psychosocial functioning, which is linked with sexual risk-taking, we also examined the indirect effect of parenting style on multiple partnerships, accounting for Wave II measures of self-efficacy and risk-taking. Results revealed that parenting style was not associated with lifetime partners but was with past year partners, and this association was direct, rather than indirect. Specifically, authoritarian and neglectful parenting were associated with multiple past year sex partners in young adulthood; adjusted associations revealed that neglectful parenting may be predictive of this outcome. Neither warmth nor control alone accounted for this association. Next steps include examining associations between parenting style and self-reported and biologically-confirmed STIs.URL
https://addhealth.cpc.unc.edu/wp-content/uploads/docs/events/20140613_Add_Health_Users_Conference_Abstracts.pdfReference Type
Conference proceedingBook Title
2014 Add Health Users ConferenceAuthor(s)
Berger, AmandaHofferth, Sandra L.