Structural equation modeling was used with a sample of 451 2-parent families to test an elaboration of J. Belsky's (1984) model of the determinants of parental behavior. Results largely supported the model. Economic pressure disrupted parenting by increasing depression and undermining access to spouse-support. Spouse support had both a direct effect on parenting and an indirect influence through depression. For mothers, spouse support moderated the impact of economic strain on parenting by reducing the disruptive impact of depression on parental behavior. Social network support only influenced parenting indirectly through depression. There was no support for the idea that social network support serves to buffer parental behavior against the adverse consequences of economic strain, nor was there evidence that it can compensate for low spouse support. The findings indicated, however, that spouse support is a more powerful determinant of quality of parenting when social network support is low.Research on parental behavior has been heavily influenced by Belsky's (1984) conceptual model of the determinants of parenting. Although studies have been completed on particular elements of Belsky's schema, there has been little effort to test his model in a more comprehensive fashion. The present study is an attempt to examine the major components of Belsky's framework.' The model to be tested is depicted in Figure 1. The primary focus of the model is the manner in which marital and social network support influence parental behavior. The section to follow discusses the elements of the proposed model, noting where it corresponds to, elaborates on, or departs from Belsky's ideas. The Proposed ModelAversive Events and Psychological Weil-Being

Objective Two studies examined racial identity (RI) as a protective factor against substance-related cognitions and substance use among Black adolescents and young adults living in high versus low percentage Black social environments. Method Using structural equation modeling techniques, Study 1 examined longer term effects of RI on substance use cognitions and behaviors among 720 Black adolescents. Study 2 examined the impact of RI and percentage Black peer environment on alcohol use among 203 Black young adults. Results Study 1 revealed that RI was prospectively associated with lower levels of perceived friends’ use and lower favorability of the substance user prototype and, in turn, lower substance willingness and use, but only among Black adolescents in predominantly White neighborhoods. These adolescents also reported greater access to substances. In Study 2, low RI Black young adults who reported predominantly White peer environments reported the highest levels of alcohol use. Conclusions These findings highlight the importance of RI among Black youth and the impact of the social context on the health risk behaviors of adolescents and young adults. This research also demonstrates the utility of social psychological models, such as the prototype–willingness model, to examine mediating and moderating effects of individual differences and contextual factors on health risk cognitions and behavior. Theoretical and applied implications of the results are discussed.

Little research has examined continuity and change in marital functioning from the middle to later years. We draw on a life course perspective and examine the influences of cumulative life experiences, personal characteristics, genetic markers, and stressful life events during the mid‐later transition on later‐life marital functioning. Although this theoretical framework is applicable to other types of close relationships and stressful life events in various domains, as mediators of these influences, we examine retirement as one important stressful life events in the mid‐later transition and marital functioning because of its centrality for most individuals. We review research supporting this theoretical framework and provide implications for future research on continuity and change in marital functioning over later adulthood.

This study examined parental influence on the values of early adolescents and the influence of adolescents' values on their choice of friends. The degree to which early adolescents identified with their parents and the parents' endorsement of two measures of conventional values were found to predict adolescents' endorsement of conventional values. In turn, adolescents who endorsed values oriented toward altruism were less likely to report association with friends who had been involved in deviant behavior. Endorsing values oriented toward success and affluence did not reduce adolescents' reports of friendships with peers who had been involved in deviant activities. The results suggest the importance of considering types of values when investigating value influence on adolescent behavior. They also suggest that values indirectly affect adolescent behavior by influencing peer group affiliation.

This investigation examined the change in children’s participation and attitudes toward sport team involvement from late elementary school to the beginning of high school. A questionnaire designed to measure importance of rewards was given to all 5th and 6th graders (n = 238) from a community with an extensive sports program. Five years later, as 10th and 11th graders, 166 (71%) of the original group participated in the follow-up study. Factor analysis extracted two consistent factors at both questionnaire administrations. One was labeled “extrinsic reward” while the other was labeled “intrinsic satisfaction.” A logit analysis using weighted least squares indicated that past participation and gender as well as the interaction of the importance given to the two reward systems contributed significantly to predicting present participation. An additional model including present value given to reward systems suggested that present value for intrinsic satisfaction might improve prediction of present participation.