Abstract:
There is substantial evidence that exposure to family adversity significantly and negatively
impacts positive adolescent development by placing adolescents at increased risk of experiencing
developmental difficulties, including conduct problems. Although the mechanisms responsible for
these effects are still largely unknown, a novel line of inquiry in the resilience field conceptualizes
positive adaptation, following exposure to atypical adversity, as resulting from complex interactions
of systems at multiple ecological levels. The purpose of the present analysis was to apply this
multisystemic resilience framework to the study of positive adaptation following exposure to family
adversity in a sample of Canadian adolescents (n = 230; mean age 16.16, SD = 1.38) and South African
adolescents (n = 421; mean age = 15.97, SD = 1.19) living in economically volatile communities
dependent on the oil and gas industry. Cross-sectional survey data were used to investigate the
mechanisms through which family adversity exercises its impact on adolescent conduct problems by
accounting for their caregiving, peer, and community resources. Results of two moderated mediation
analyses showed that family adversity impacts adolescent externalizing mental health negatively, via
disrupted caregiving, when other resources are also considered. For the Canadian adolescents, these
negative impacts were protectively moderated by peer support, but not moderated by appreciation
for community traditions. In contrast, peer support showed no significant protective effect for the
South African sample, while a strong appreciation for community traditions was positively and
significantly associated with conduct difficulties. Contextual dynamics (e.g., social unrest) provide a
plausible explanation for the discrepant results and bring attention to the importance of theorizing
resilience in context.
