Parental Rejection, Resilience, and Health-risk Behavior in Emerging Adults

Objectives: In this study, we investigated the sex differences in the impact of perceived parental rejection on various health-risk behaviors and the moderation of resilience on the relations between perceived parental rejection and health-risk behaviors. Methods: Cross-sectional data of 730 college-attending emerging adults were analyzed with Poisson and negative binomial models. Results: Maternal rejection predicted drug use and aggressive behavior for men and binge drinking, drug use, and aggressive behavior for women; paternal rejection predicted drug use for women. Resilience buffered the negative association of maternal rejection to drug use and the relation of paternal rejection to aggressive behavior in men. Resilience enhanced the association between maternal rejection and drug use but buffered the association between paternal rejection and drug use in women. Conclusions: Parental rejection was associated with health-risk behavior, whereas resilience may attenuate such a relationship. Prevention and intervention programs should consider sex-specific needs.