Familial antecedents of young adult health risk behavior: A longitudinal study

Author(s): Feldman, S. S.

Journal/Book: J Family Psychology. 1998; 12: 750 First St NE, Washington, DC 20002-4242. Amer Psychological Assoc. 66-80.

Abstract: With a sample of 116,the authors asked how characteristics of the family, rated by adolescents, predicted health risk behavior at young adulthood 6 years later and whether adolescent and young adult personal and emotional functioning mediated these relationships. The authors also explored the consistency of relationships among these variables across 4 types of families: balanced, traditional, disconnected, and emotionally strained. The family variables significantly predicted young adult health risk behavior over time and functioning at adolescence and young adulthood did not serve as a mediator. The family model operated well in 3 of the 4 family contexts; it failed to operate among offspring from disconnected families. Characteristics of the family affect the display of health risk behavior when offspring come from families that have well-defined and coherent family structures.

Note: Article Fisher L, Univ Calif San Francisco, Dept Family & Community Med, Sch Med, Box 0900, San Francisco,CA 94143 USA

Keyword(s): EMPIRICALLY DERIVED TYPOLOGY; ADOLESCENT HEALTH; SEXUAL-BEHAVIOR; DRUG-USE; PROJECT; CHILDREN; ALCOHOL; PARENTS; CONTEXT; DISEASE

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