Disentangling the risks : Parent criminal justice involvement and children's exposure to family risks

Research Summary: The analyses reported in this article are based on data from a longitudinal epidmiologic study of youth from 11 rural counties in North Carolina-the Great Smoky Mountains Study. Nearly half (47.4%) of the children in the population represented in this study had a parent or other parent figure who had been arrested as an adult. Analyses showed that parent risk factors (i.e., substance abuse, mental illness, and lack of education) had a significant direct effect on children's exposure to family risks. These parent risk factors were also associated with greater odds of parental involvement in the criminal justice system (CJS), which in turn, had a significant association with children's likelihood of experiencing two types of family risks (i.e., economic strain and instability), net the effect of parent risk factors. Parent CJS involvement, however, was not significantly associated with family risks related to family structure or quality of care. Exposure to risks in these latter domains was better explained by the direct effect of parental substance abuse, mental health problems, and lack of education.