This longitudinal study investigated the role of early father involvement (at age 7) in juvenile delinquency controlling for the effect of mother involvement at age 7 and other risk and protective factors. For both genders, family size in childhood and low academic motivation in adolescence were positively related to trouble with the police at age 16. Uniquely for boys, IQ and father involvement were negatively related to trouble with the police. Trouble with the police in adolescence was also related with non-intact family structure in childhood in girls, and with parental criminality in boys
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