ABSTRACT
Sixth graders in adult care during out-of-school hours were contrasted with 6th graders in self-care situations, on 2 occasions, winter and summer (N = 112). Hierarchical multiple regression analyses examined how well out-of-school care situations predicted 3 dimensions each of peer experience and self-image, concurrently and longitudinally. Additional analyses assessed the role of parent–adolescent relations in moderating the relation between self-care and adolescent behavior. Results revealed no differences between adolescents in adult care and those in self-care at home. Self-care girls who were more distant from adult supervision (e.g., they spent unsupervised time hanging out), however, reported more problem behavior and contact with more deviant peers in relation to other girls and to boys. Parental acceptance and firm control, however, appeared to buffer girls from engaging in problem behavior when in self-care away from home. Orthogonal contrasts between groups showed that girls and boys in self-care away from home were more involved with peers than those in self-care at home or in adult care.
