A study on the moderating effect of family functioning on the relationship between deviant peer affiliation and delinquency among Chinese adolescents

This study examined the interaction effect between family functioning and delinquent peer association on delinquent behavior in a sample of 534 adolescents from five middle schools in Shenzhen, the People’s Republic of China. The results showed that both exposure to delinquent peers and family functioning had significant main effects on delinquency, and family functioning significantly buffered the negative effect of association with deviant peers on delinquency. Further analyses using the five subscales of family functioning demonstrated that family harmony and parental concern were significantly predictive of delinquency, and harmony, parental concern and control significantly moderated the risk of affiliating with deviant peers. This study suggested that harmonious family environment with high levels of parental concern and parental control were effective in alleviating the negative impact of deviant peer association on delinquent behavior in the Chinese context.