Perceived Parental Legitimacy as a Moderator of Parent-Child Communication's Effects on Latina/o Adolescent Substance Use

Health Commun. 2018 Jun;33(6):743-752. doi: 10.1080/10410236.2017.1306911. Epub 2017 Apr 12.

Abstract

Utilizing primary socialization theory (PST) and longitudinal survey data from 381 Latina/o sixth- through eighth-grade students, we hypothesized that four types of parent anti-substance use messages (i.e., parents' own past substance use, religious beliefs, respect for family, and peer resistance) would discourage Latina/o students' substance use, particularly when the students perceived their parents' anti-substance use messages were legitimate. The results supported moderation. For Latina/o students who thought that their parents' anti-substance use messages were legitimate, many of the anti-substance use messages were negatively related to substance use, but the associations were positive or nonsignificant for Latina/o students who thought that their parents' anti-substance use messages were not legitimate. The findings extend past work on PST and anti-substance use parent-child communication, highlighting the importance of perceived legitimacy and message content.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Child
  • Female
  • Health Communication*
  • Hispanic or Latino / statistics & numerical data*
  • Humans
  • Longitudinal Studies
  • Male
  • Parent-Child Relations*
  • Parents / psychology*
  • Social Perception
  • Students / psychology*
  • Substance-Related Disorders / prevention & control*
  • Substance-Related Disorders / psychology