Prospective Relations among Low-Income African American Adolescents' Maternal Attachment Security, Self-Worth, and Risk Behaviors
Date
2017-01
Authors
Lockhart, Ginger
Phillips, Samantha
Bolland, Anneliese
Delgado, Melissa Y.
Tietjen, Juliet
Bolland, John
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Frontiers Media
Abstract
This study examined prospective mediating relations among mother-adolescent attachment security, self-worth, and risk behaviors, including substance use and violence, across ages 13–17 in a sample of 901 low-income African American adolescents. Path analyses revealed that self-worth was a significant mediator between attachment security and risk behaviors, such that earlier attachment security predicted self-worth 1 year later, which in turn, predicted substance use, weapon carrying, and fighting in the 3rd year. Implications for the role of the secure base concept within the context of urban poverty are discussed.
Description
Keywords
adolescent, poverty, self-worth, substance use, violence, attachment, Family and Consumer Sciences
Citation
Lockhart, G., Phillips, S., Bolland, A., Delgado, M., Tietjen, J., & Bolland, J. (2017) Prospective relations among low-income African American adolescents’ maternal attachment security, self-worth, and risk behaviors. Frontiers in Psychology, 8(33).