Date of Award

Summer 8-1-2025

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Psychology (PsyD)

Department

Psychology

First Advisor

Jennifer Schriver

Second Advisor

Kevin Bolinskey

Third Advisor

Virgil Sheets

Abstract

Juvenile delinquency tends to be higher in single-parent households (Kroese et al., 2021). Research investigating this phenomenon has found conflicting results on whether a juvenile has lower rates of delinquency with a custodial father (paternal hypothesis), custodial mother (maternal hypothesis), or whether gender is secondary to other factors. Similarly, some studies found that the interaction of the juvenile living with a same-gendered parent was associated with lower levels of delinquency. Further complications include how parental variables, such as behavioral control and support levels, may interact with the juvenile and custodial parent gender (Hoeve et al., 2009). The current study utilizes a cross-sectional design of 6th to 12th graders (n = 1,354) living in single-parent homes to examine whether juvenile gender, parent gender, juvenile and custodial parent gender dyad, parental behavioral control, and parental support are associated with juvenile delinquency. Results generally support a structuralist view toward custodial parents, where the gender of the custodial parent is secondary to factors such as levels of behavioral control and support in the home. Behavioral control and support were inversely associated with all types of delinquency, with behavioral control having a slightly stronger negative association with delinquency when statistically compared to support. Furthermore, results reveal that male juvenile gender was associated with more behavioral delinquency but not low- or high-risk substance use. Future research, practical applications, and methodological concerns in custodial household delinquency research are discussed.

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