Similarities and Differences in Adolescent Siblings’ Alcohol-Related Attitudes, Use, and Delinquency: Evidence for Convergent and Divergent Influence Processes

Keywords

Adolescence, Alcohol use, Delinquency, Modeling, Sibling differentiation, Siblings, Social learning

Abstract

A growing body of research indicates that siblings influence each other’s risky and deviant behaviors during adolescence. Guided by research and theory on sibling similarities and differences, this study examined the operation and implications of three different influence processes—social learning, shared friends, and sibling differentiation—during adolescence. Participants included one parent and two adolescent siblings (earlier born age: M = 17.17 years, SD = 0.94; later born age: M = 14.52 years, SD = 1.27) from 326 families. Data were collected via telephone interviews. Using reports from both older and younger siblings, two-stage cluster analyses revealed three influence profiles: mutual modeling and shared friends, younger sibling admiration, and differentiation. Additional analyses revealed that mutual modeling and shared friends as well as younger sibling admiration were linked to similarities in brothers’ and sisters’ health-risk behaviors and attitudes, whereas differentiation processes were associated with divergence in siblings’ characteristics. The discussion focuses on refining the study of sibling influence, with particular attention paid to the operation and implications of both convergent and divergent influence processes.

Original Publication Citation

Whiteman, S. D., Jensen, A. C., & Maggs, J. L. (2014). Similarities and differences in adolescent siblings’ alcohol-related attitudes, use, and delinquency: Evidence for convergent and divergent influence processes. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 43, 687-697. doi: 10.1007/s10964-013-9971-z

Document Type

Peer-Reviewed Article

Publication Date

2013-06-14

Permanent URL

http://hdl.lib.byu.edu/1877/5501

Publisher

Journal of Youth and Adolescence

Language

English

College

Family, Home, and Social Sciences

Department

Family Life

University Standing at Time of Publication

Full Professor

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