The role of perceived parent monitoring and support on urban child and adolescent problem behavior.

Parental practices on problem behavior based on gender and age effects with urban youth were studied. Participants were 8-17 years old (N = 3,658; 66% African-American) and logistic regression models were conducted. For pre-teen females, decreased friend monitoring was related to high problem behavior; for teen females, lower maternal support and decreased home monitoring were significant. None of the models were significant for pre-teen males and lack of home monitoring was significant for teen males. Strategies for preventing problem behavior within urban communities will be more effective if they are tailored to gender and developmental factors.