Dickson, Daniel J.

As adolescents transition to middle school, math confidence and performance
declines (Eccles et al., 1993; Lee, Statuto, & Kadar-Voivodas, 1983). These declines are
typically attributed to social and maturational changes (Eccles, Lord, & Midgley, 1991;
Simmons & Blyth, 1987). In this dissertation, I explore the hypothesis that low parent
support for schoolwork is also responsible.
Latino-American adolescents are especially at risk for math difficulties.
Maintaining adolescents’ engagement and performance in math are important goals for
mothers because high levels of both are requisites for many professional careers. This
dissertation will focus on Latino-American families to determine if mothers’ homework
involvement is associated with changes in children’s math-related outcomes across the
transition to secondary school. Parental involvement in math homework is assumed to mitigate declines in math
performance during this transition. Cognitive models suggest that involved parents utilize
scaffolding (Rogoff & Gardner, 1984) and instruction to ensure math achievement
(Pomerantz & Moorman, 2010). Motivational models suggest that involved parents foster
math engagement by bolstering child confidence, modeling management strategies, and
promoting values that encourage children to work hard (Grolnick & Slowiaczek, 1994;
Simpkins, Fredricks, & Eccles, 2015). However, empirical evidence in support of the
importance of parents in math achievement is limited. While positive forms of
involvement co-occur with better math outcomes (Bhanot & Jovanovic, 2005; Rice et al.,
2013), no studies have examined such associations longitudinally. Children who are
uninterested in math may be more susceptible to the effects of parental homework
involvement because they lack internal motivation for mastery that underlies performance
in other children.
The present study examines the extent to which Latina-American mothers’
involvement in math homework is effective in preventing declines in child math-related
outcomes (i.e., perceptions of math ability, etc) during the transition to middle school.
Child math interest was postulated to moderate this association. Results indicated that
low maternal homework involvement predicts worsening child math-related outcomes,
but only for children who were intrinsically uninterested in math.
The findings hold important implications for parents, who must work to ensure
that they remain engaged in their children’s activities, especially if children appear
uninterested in math.

Adolescent alcohol abuse increases across the adolescent years. If left unchecked,
alcohol abuse can give rise to delinquency, poor grades, and risky sexual behavior
(Stueve & O’Donnell, 2005; Ellickson, Tucker, & Klein, 2003). Past research suggests
that minimal parental oversight increases the risk for adolescent alcohol abuse. There is
also evidence, however, that parents withdraw from oversight in the face of adolescent
problem behaviors (Barber & Olsen, 1997; Hafen & Laursen, 2009). Each may vary
according to the child’s physical development. Parents may respond to pubertal
maturation with reduced supervision and early maturing girls may be sensitive to parent
supervision because of the additional pressures and attention they receive from older,
possibly deviant, peers (Stattin, Kerr, & Skoog, 2011).