The self-fulfilling influence of mother expectations on children's underage drinking

This research examined whether mothers' expectations about their children's drinking behavior influenced their children's future alcohol use through self-fulfilling prophecies. It also investigated whether children's self-esteem, family social class, or the valence of mother expectations moderated this process. Analyses of longitudinal data from 505 mother-child dyads yielded results consistent with a self-fulfilling prophecy. The inaccurate portion of mother expectations predicted children's future alcohol use after accounting for relevant control variables. Moderation analyses indicated that this effect was stronger among higher self-esteem children and when mother expectations were positively valenced (i.e., when mothers underestimated their children's future alcohol use). The findings are discussed in terms of parent-child relationship quality, peer influences, self theories, and out-group stereotypes.