Satisfaction of parents with their conduct-disordered and substance-abusing youth

This study examined parental satisfaction (using the Parent Satisfaction With Youth Scale) in 132 parents of adolescents who were dually diagnosed with conduct disorder/oppositional defiant disorder and drug abuse/dependence. Results indicated parental satisfaction did not vary as a function of age, ethnic minority status, or gender. Parents of younger youth were generally more dissatisfied than parents of older adolescents although younger youth were no more delinquent than older youth. These results suggest that parents of delinquent youth become tolerant of their children's behavior problems with time. As expected, parents were most dissatisfied with their youth's use of drugs, illicit behavior, school performance, and response to discipline. Parents who endorsed lower levels of satisfaction reported their youth engaged in more pronounced levels of problem behavior and more drug use than did parents who were relatively more satisfied with their youth. Study implications and future directions are discussed.