How families supervise their youth by setting boundaries influences deviance such as substance abuse and delinquency. These boundaries include parental monitoring, household organization and routines, and decision making (Herman et al., 1997).

The issue of lack of monitoring has received considerable attention in recent years. One study found that latchkey youth who were home alone two or more days per week were four times more likely to have gotten drunk in the past month than those youth who had parental supervision five or more times a week (Mulhall et al., 1996). Another study found that children who had the least monitoring initiated drug use at earlier ages. The contrast in risk of initiating alcohol, tobacco, or other drug use across levels of parent monitoring was greatest when children were under 11 years old. At older ages there was no difference in riskfor these drugs. However, for marijuana, cocaine, and inhalant drugs, there was a sustained risk of starting to use these drugs for youth who received low levels of monitoring in middle childhood (Chilcoat and Anthony, 1996)

Some authors have emphasized the importance of the parent's influence on the youth's choice of friends. Adolescents whose friends use drugs are very likely to use drugs themselves. And family variables may influence the choice of friends and thereby influence the risk of drug use. Adolescents who come from families where alcohol and other drugs are used are much more likely to use drugs themselves and choose friends who use drugs. And when parental monitoring is high, adolescents are much less likely to choose friends who use drugs. Thus, parents have powerful influence on their adolescents by their influence on their choice of friends and their monitoring of the peer selection process (Bahr et al., 1993).

The likelihood of youths' associating with drug-using friends is reduced by a close relationship with their parents and by knowing that their friends disapprove of drug use. Students do not use drugs if they are unwilling to jeopardize their relationship with their parents and nonusing friends. They are also less likely to use drugs if they think their parents and friends disapprove of drug use and if their friends do not use drugs themselves (Reid, 1989).

Working at least 20 hours a week during the school year is a risk; it brings the adverse consequences of fatigue as well as excessive leisure income. It may also lessen the parent's ability to monitor the youth's time, choice of friends, and use of money. It is associated with higher levels of emotional distress, substance use, and earlier age of sexual debut.

Parenting IS Prevention Training of Trainers Workshop, 1998	SAMHSA

Office of National Drug Control Policy