Family Structure and Delinquency in the English-Speaking Caribbean: The Moderating Role of Parental Attachment, Supervision, and Commitment to Negative Peers

• Author: Kayla Freemon,Veronica M. Herrera,Hyunjung Cheon,Charles M. Katz
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1177/15412040221132192
• Published date: 01 April 2023
• Date: 01 April 2023
• Subject Matter: Articles

Article

Youth Violence and Juvenile Justice

2023, Vol. 21(2) 149–171

© The Author(s) 2022

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DOI: 10.1177/15412040221132192

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Family Structure and

Delinquency in the

English-Speaking Caribbean:

The Moderating Role of

Parental Attachment,

Supervision, and Commitment

to Negative Peers

Kayla Freemon

1

, Veronica M. Herrera

2

, Hyunjung Cheon

3

, and

Charles M. Katz

1

Abstract

Growing up in a household without two parents present is an established risk factor for youth

delinquency. However, much of the research on family structure and delinquency derives from

U.S. samples, limiting applicability to the developing world. The present study explores the role of

traditional and non-traditional family structures on self-reported delinquency in eight English-

speaking Caribbean nations. We further examine the moderating role of family processes (pa-

rental attachment and parental supervision) and commitment to negative peers on this rela-

tionship. We f‌ind that youth from intact nuclear families, with a mother and father present, engage

in less delinquency than youth from intact blended, single-parent, or no-parent hou seholds.

Further, family structure moderated the relationship between delinquency, parenta l attachment,

and commitment to negative peers. Theoretical and research implications are discussed.

Keywords

family structure, delinquency, parental attachment, parental supervision, commitment to nega tive

peers, Caribbean

1

Center for Violence Prevention and Community Safety, School of Criminology and Criminal Justice, Arizona State

University, Phoenix, AZ, USA

2

Division of Politics Administration and Justice, California State University, Fullerton

3

Department of Criminal Justice, The University of Texas at El Paso, El Paso, TX, USA

Corresponding Author:

Kayla Freemon, Center for Violence Prevention and Community Safety, School of Criminology and Criminal Justice,

Arizona State University, 411 N. Central Ave, Suite 680, Phoenix, AZ 85004, USA.

Email: kfreemon@asu.edu

Introduction

Growing up in a household without two parents is an established risk factor for youth delinquency

(Apel & Kaukinen, 2008;Wells & Rankin, 1991;Rebellon, 2002). However, much of the research

on family structure and delinquency derives from U.S. samples, limiting applicability to the

developing world. While benef‌its exist for youth residing with an intact family (i.e., with a mother

and father present), such as the ability to provide greater supervision, the traditional family might

not serve as a strong protective factor against delinquency in some countries, such as those in the

English-speaking Caribbean, given cultural differences in the role and function of diverse family

structures. While the English-speaking Caribbean has been the subject of a relatively wide body of

research on family structure, there is little research available on the relationship between family

and delinquent behavior, so it remains a question whether family structure and family processes

are related to delinquency in a way that is similar to high-income countries.

As in other developing nations, youth in the Caribbean comprise a large subset of the

population (Foss et al., 2013). Examining the relationship between family structure and de-

linquency garners unique insights into the youth crime problem in the region. The present study

explores the role of traditional and non-traditional family structures on self-reported offending

in eight English-speaking Caribbean nations: Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada,

Guyana, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, and Trinidad and Tobago.

We further examine the moderating role of family processes (parental attachment and parental

supervision) and commitment to negative peers on the relationship between family structure and

delinquency. The theoretical implications of this work are relevant for future policy and

programming in the region as family-based programs developed have been exported to the

Global South without an examination f‌irst of whether these processes support transferability

(Katz et al., 2021).

Family Structure in the Caribbean

The prevalence of different family structures is diff‌icult to determine in the Caribbean due to

variations in items included in data collection instruments. Census estimates in Guyana (from

2009) and Trinidad and Tobago (from 2011) show that approximately 55% and 54% of

households, respectively, are nuclear households

1

(United Nations, 2019). Additional estimates

suggest the percentage of female-headed households in Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, and

Grenada ranged from around 40%–50% (Mondesire, 2015).

The Caribbean has a uniquely “matrifocal context,”especially among African-Caribbean

families, with women playing a prominent role in the family and society overall (Safa, 2005).

Some have attributed the regions’matrifocality to colonization of the Caribbean through slavery

and indentured servitude; enslaved individuals were not allowed to marry; however, mothers and

children were often kept together (Safa, 2005). Herkovits & Herkovits (1934) suggested a cultural

persistence argument linking matrifocality to cultural norms on family roles in Western Africa. In

post-colonial societies, the inf‌luence of missionaries clashed to reinforce marriage and nuclear

families as a sign of the middle class (Safa, 2005).

Even with men present in the home, women are typically responsible for child-rearing and

socialization. However, research notes that some men play a key role in children’s decision-

making (Roopnarine, 1996). The extended family also plays a vital role in the region, with the

presence of grandparents, other relatives, and other non-related inf‌luencers (e.g., godparents,

friends) (Plaza, 2000).

While the number of single-parent households has grown exponentially and been deemed a

social concern in developed nations such as the United States and the United Kingdom, a high

150 Youth Violence and Juvenile Justice 21(2)