Parenthood and adult criminal offending: The importance of relationship quality

Drawing on social control, social learning, and general strain theories, it was hypothesized that the quality of a parent-child relationship would be negatively related to adult crime. In addition, it was predicted that relationship quality would more strongly impact the criminal behavior of single parents, teenage parents, and those with prior criminal records. Data from the National Youth Survey were analyzed using a combination of probit and truncated regression. Results provided partial support for hypotheses.