Direct, mediated, moderated, and cumulative relations between neighborhood characteristics and adolescent outcomes

Using data from the 1990 Survey of Children and Parents, we explored direct and indirect associations between neighborhood conditions and adolescents' well-being. Analyses of data from 348 parents and their 14- to 17-year-old children indicated that neighborhood characteristics were directly related to adolescent outcomes (i.e., psychological adjustment and school problems). Second, parenting behaviors and peer characteristics significantly mediated this association. Third, the relative adaptiveness of parenting behaviors and peer attributes was contingent on neighborhood characteristics. Finally, neighborhood, parenting, and peer variables each had a unique contribution to adolescent outcomes; thus, stress across these domains was additive and posed cumulative risk for adolescents' well-being.