This study examines the development of childhood and adolescent antisocial behavior in a three generation prospective panel study. The children of the initial subjects of the Rochester Youth Development Study are focal subjects of this long-term study, allowing us to examine two general issues. The first is to describe intergenerational continuity and discontinuity across the generations for a broad spectrum of antisocial behaviors, including onset, course, severity, and type. The second is to identify mediating processes to explain both intergenerational continuity and intergenerational discontinuity in antisocial behavior. Because our initial sample included both males and females, we can examine these issues for fathers as well as mothers. In examining these issues, we capitalize on the developmental data collected since 1988 on both the parents and grandparents of these focal subjects. Combining these data with the prospective data collected in the intergenerational study provides an opportunity to examine how the parent's own developmental course influences their transition to adulthood and their behavior as parents which, in turn, can be used to explain the onset and development of the child's antisocial behavior. By nesting this study within an ongoing panel study, we can greatly broaden the range of the explanatory variables used to investigate antisocial behavior. In Year 1 we selected G3 children 2 years of age and older (n=371), and we continue to add new 2- year-olds. By Year 10, we will have a total sample of approximately 470. Annually, we interview the child (age 8 and older), the parent who has been a member of the Rochester Youth Development Study, and the child's other primary caregiver. Every other year, we observe dyadic interactions between the child and each of these caregivers. Data are collected from teachers, schools, and other agencies. Measures include the young parent's structural position and stressors, antisocial behavior and prosocial bonds, peer friendship networks, and parenting behaviors. The manner in which these attributes unfold over the parent's life course will be used to explain the development of the child's antisocial behaviors and prosocial competencies.
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