Working Paper #189: Young adult behaviour problems: Family antecedents and behaviour mediators

Objectives: To describe the continuity of problem behaviour (PB) from adolescence to early adulthood in a population sample of males, and to estimate the effects of family factors and individual adolescent behaviors in predicting problem behavior in early adulthood.

Method: The sample of 350 males aged 13-16 years participated in both the 1983 and 1987 waves of the Ontario Child Health Study. In 1983, parents reported baseline family characteristics and child behavior problems. Adolescents self-reported baseline substance use. Four years later, young adult respondents self-reported acts of mischief, violence and crime.

Results: Among the 47 males with severe adolescent PB at baseline, a large minority had severe PB four years later (17%). A substantial number of males with severe adolescent PB showed persistent but less severe PB in early adulthood (47%). While males with no adolescent PB (n=166) show strong continuity in early adulthood, a concerning proportion (27%) showed moderate or severe PB in early adulthood. Family dysfunction at baseline increased the risk of subsequent behaviour problems (OR=2.18, CI=1.12 - 4.22), adjusting for age (OR=1.24, CI= 1.01-1.52). There is evidence to suggest that adolescent alcohol consumption (OR=1.89, CI=1.42-2.50) and adolescent conduct disorder (OR=6.60, CI=2.60-16.78) acted as mediators of this relationship.