1. Objectifs

Questions/Hypothèses :
« [...] stressful experiences from bith to age seven can lead to early onset of puberty, early onset of sexual intercourse and can also lead to risky sexual behavior. » (p. 188)

2. Méthode

Échantillon/Matériau :
« Four groups of subjects were composed. Group 1 included 32 subjects with an alcoholic father and a mother with a low level of social position. Group 2 included 33 subjects with an alcoholic father and a mother with a high level of social position. The other two groups were composed of nonalcoholic fathers and mothers with a low (group 3) and a high (group 4) social position [...]. The average age of boys for the sample (N=131) was 11.4 years. » (p. 189)

Instruments :
- Short Michigan Alcoholism Screening Test (SMAST; Selzer, Vinokur + Roojen, 1975);
- Diagnostic Interview Schedule (DIS; Robins, Helzer, Crougham + Ratcliff, 1981);
- Questionnaire for maternal social position;
- Questionnaire on parenting behavior;
- Age-appropriate regular classroom (A-ARC) to measure school status;
- Social Behavior Questionnaire (SBQ; Tremblau et al., 1991);
- Pubertal Development Scale (Petersen, Crockett, Richards + Boxer, 1988);
- Questionnaire about sexual activity and sexual behavior.

Type de traitement des données :
Analyse statistique

3. Résumé

« Two competing hypotheses concerning the effects of stressful environments on the onset of puberty were tested using longitudinal date for a sample of boys from low socioeconomic backgrouds. Paternal alcoholism and maternal social position were used as indicators of family stress. School placement was monitored from school entry to 14 years of age. Teachers rated boys’ disruptive and anxious behaviors, while the boys reported on parenting behaviors at 10 years of age. Pubertal maturation, age of first sexual intercourse and sexual behavior were assessed between 11 and 14 years of age. The prepubertal data indicated that boys with an alcoholic father, or a mother from a low social position, were more stressed and had more behavior problems: the boys with alcoholic fathers perceived their parents as being more punitive, and as setting fewer rules concerning their behavior; those who had at least one maladjusted parent were more often placed out of an appropriate regular classroom, and were rated more disruptive and more anxious by their teachers. Paradoxically, the results for the onset of puberty gave support to the two rival hypotheses. Paternal alcoholism leads to a delay of male pubertal onset, as suggested by the hypothesis that stress activated the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, and inhibits the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis. However, sons of alcoholic fathers had more frequent sexual intercourse and more sexual partners, as suggested by the evolutionary theory of socialization. High maternal social position acted as a protective factor for school placement of boys with an alcoholic father. These results challenged a key hypothesis of the evolutionary theory for males. They indicated that the link between childhood family environment, behavior development, pubertal maturation and sexual promiscuity are more complex than anticipated. » (p. 187)