Relationships With Important Nonparental Adults and Positive Youth Development: An Examination of Youth Self-Regulatory Strengths as Mediators

Abstract

Youth relationships with important nonparental adults (INAs) influence adolescent development. However, prior studies have not simultaneously examined the quantity and quality of INA relationships in predicting youth outcomes, nor have prior studies considered mediators of these constructs. In a sample of tenth through twelfth graders, we modeled the relationships among quantity and quality of INA relationships, intentional self-regulation, hopeful future expectations, and the Five Cs of positive youth development. Hopeful future expectations mediated relations between quantity and youth confidence, character, and caring and between emotional closeness and youth confidence. Finally, youth intentional self-regulation predicted changes in character.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

This research was supported in part by grants from the National 4-H Council and the Thrive Foundation for Youth.

Notes

¹For latent factors, we calculated omega as an estimate of reliability. For scales treated as weighted composites, we calculated alpha as an estimate of reliability.

²Although we analyzed the same data using CFA, we did so only as a precursory step to our SEM models. Our results should therefore not be interpreted as confirming the scale's factor structure.