Abstract
The younger siblings of childbearing adolescents have poorer school outcomes and exhibit more internalizing and externalizing
problems compared to their peers without a childbearing sister. We test a model where living with an adolescent childbearing
sister constitutes a major family stressor that disrupts mothers’ parenting and well-being, and through which, adversely affect
youths’ adjustment. Data came from 243 Latino younger siblings (62% female, M age 13.7 years) and their mothers, 121 of whom lived with a childbearing adolescent sister and 122 of whom did not. Individual
fixed-effects models controlled for earlier measures of each respective model construct, thereby reducing omitted variable
bias from pre-existing group differences. Results show that, for boys, the relationship between living with a childbearing
adolescent sister and youth outcomes was sequentially mediated through mothers’ stress and parenting (i.e., monitoring and
nurturance). For girls, however, the relationship was mediated through mothers’ monitoring only. Findings elucidate the within-family
processes that contribute to the problematic outcomes of youth living with childbearing adolescent older sisters.
problems compared to their peers without a childbearing sister. We test a model where living with an adolescent childbearing
sister constitutes a major family stressor that disrupts mothers’ parenting and well-being, and through which, adversely affect
youths’ adjustment. Data came from 243 Latino younger siblings (62% female, M age 13.7 years) and their mothers, 121 of whom lived with a childbearing adolescent sister and 122 of whom did not. Individual
fixed-effects models controlled for earlier measures of each respective model construct, thereby reducing omitted variable
bias from pre-existing group differences. Results show that, for boys, the relationship between living with a childbearing
adolescent sister and youth outcomes was sequentially mediated through mothers’ stress and parenting (i.e., monitoring and
nurturance). For girls, however, the relationship was mediated through mothers’ monitoring only. Findings elucidate the within-family
processes that contribute to the problematic outcomes of youth living with childbearing adolescent older sisters.
- Content Type Journal Article
- Category Empirical Research
- Pages 1-14
- DOI 10.1007/s10964-011-9715-x
- Authors
- Nina C. Chien, Child Trends, 4301 Connecticut Ave NW, Suite 350, Washington, DC 20008, USA
- Patricia L. East, Department of Pediatrics, University of California, San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive # 0927, La Jolla, CA 92093-0927, USA
- Journal Journal of Youth and Adolescence
- Online ISSN 1573-6601
- Print ISSN 0047-2891