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In this study, we examine the impact of singlemother families and nonresident father's involvement in single-mother families on delinquency, heavy drinking, and illicit drug use in Black and White adolescents by gender. The study is based on a representative household sample of over 600 adolescents and their parents. Using adolescent reports of support as an indicator of nonresident father involvement, we find that for White adolescent males, nonresident father involvement buffers the negative effects of single-mother families on delinquency, heavy drinking, and illicit drug use. Indeed, the highest rates of problem behavior are found among White male adolescents in singlemother families without the support of a nonresident father. However, for Black male adolescents, we find fewer problem behaviors when nonresident fathers are not involved in single-mother families.
Key Words: adolescent substance abuse, African Americans, delinquency, gender, fathers, race, single mothers.
As we approach the point where close to half the children growing up are likely to spend some time in a single-mother home, many researchers are now raising questions about the conditions under which single-mother families function well (Furstenberg & Harris, 1993; Furstenberg, Morgan, & Allison, 1987; King 1994a, 1994b). Rather than focusing on the negative outcomes in single-mother families, more researchers are asking questions about the conditions under which children in single-mother families show resilience-function well when the risk factors in their lives suggest they could be functioning poorly. This new approach to single-mother families not only may provide useful information to parents and counselors, it also may contribute toward understanding some of the inconsistencies in the findings from previous research on the effects of single-mother families on delinquency and substance abuse in adolescents.
Although numerous studies show that children who grow up in single-parent families have more negative outcomes than those with both parents (e.g., Dornbusch et al., 1985; Flewelling & Bauman, 1990; Garasky, 1995; Hetherington, Camara, & Featherman, 1983; McLanahan & Sandefur, 1994; Newcomer & Udry, 1987; Zill, 1988), several studies show either that family structure has only negligible impact on child outcomes or that children from single-mother families are no more likely to be delinquent or use alcohol and other drugs than children from two-parent families (Turner, Irwin, & Millstone, 1991; Watts & Watts, 1991).
Recent reviews of research suggest that...