Adolescent Sexual Activity and the Development of Delinquent Behavior: The Role of Relationship Context
Adolescent Sexual Activity and the Development of Delinquent Behavior: The Role of Relationship Context
复制标题
DOI：
10.1007/s10964-010-9601-y
复制
发表时间：
2011-07-01
影响因子：
4.9
通讯作者：
Mendle, Jane
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Harden, K. Paige;Mendle, Jane
尽管青少年性活动与犯罪行为之间存在明确的关联，但很少有研究探讨关系环境在调节这种关联方面的潜在重要性。目前的研究使用了来自国家青少年健康纵向研究的 519 对同性双胞胎（48.6% 女性）的纵向行为遗传数据，这些同性双胞胎分为两个年龄组（13-15 岁和 16-18 岁）。在控制遗传影响后，分析测试了浪漫关系和非浪漫关系中发生的青少年性活动是否与从青春期到成年早期的犯罪有关。结果表明，对于年轻和年长的青少年来说，共同的潜在基因都会影响性行为和犯罪。在控制了这些遗传影响后，年轻青少年的性活动和犯罪之间不存在双胞胎内的关联。在年龄较大的青少年中，浪漫关系中发生的性活动从横向和纵向上预测犯罪率较低，而非浪漫关系中的性活动则预测犯罪率较高。这些结果与新兴研究一致，该研究表明青少年性活动的心理相关性可能受到该活动发生的社会背景的调节。
Despite the well-established association between adolescent sexual activity and delinquent behavior, little research has examined the potential importance of relationship contexts in moderating this association. The current study used longitudinal, behavioral genetic data on 519 same-sex twin pairs (48.6% female) divided into two age cohorts (13-15 and 16-18 years olds) drawn from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health. Analyses tested whether adolescent sexual activity that occurred in romantic versus non-romantic relationships was associated with delinquency from adolescence to early adulthood, after controlling for genetic influences. Results indicated that, for both younger and older adolescents, common underlying genes influence both sexual behavior and delinquency. After controlling for these genetic influences, there was no within-twin pair association between sexual activity and delinquency in younger adolescents. In older adolescents, sexual activity that occurred in romantic relationships predicted lower levels of delinquency, both cross-sectionally and longitudinally, whereas sexual activity in non-romantic relationships predicted higher levels of delinquency. These results are consistent with emerging research that suggests that the psychological correlates of adolescent sexual activity may be moderated by the social context in which this activity occurs.