Belsky, Steinberg, Houts, and Halpern-Felsher (2010) examined the connection between maternal harshness and early menarche. Early menarche has been associated with an increase in sexual risk-taking behaviors. The research attempted to support BSD theory of paternal absence being associated with increased sexual behaviors leading to pregnancy at an earlier age as a reproductive strategy of natural selection. The study utilized a longitudinal method of observation to make the relation between parenting styles of the mother and sexual risk-taking behavior by having the mothers complete a questionnaire when the child was four years old and following up with the child until the age of fifteen to evaluate sexual behaviors. The researchers adjusted the age of menarche to take into account hereditary effects. Belsky et al. (2010) found a correlation between the harshness of the mother’s parenting style and the age of menarche after taking into account heredity factors. A stronger connection existed between the age of menarche and risk-taking of both a sexual nature and other risk-taking behaviors. A strong correlation also occurred between the parental harshness and other risk-taking behaviors. Belsky et al. (2010) explained that the relationships that exist between the variables strengthen the BSD theory that the absence of a father leads to earlier sexual behaviors due to reproductive strategies.
Harden and Mendle (2012) examined whether the environment has an impact on the onset of menarche in girls. As expected, they found that the environment does have an impact on the time of menarche onset. Wierson, Long, and Forehand (1993) examined the affects of familial stress upon the age of menarche onset to determine that girls in stress situations experienced earlier menarche than those not in stressful situations. Mendle, Leve, Van Ryzin, Natsuaki, and Ge (2011) examined the correlations of abuse and mistreatment to the age of menarche onset to find that abuse and mistreatment had a strong correlation to the age of menarche onset in young girls. The connection that each of these studies have is that girls that experience greater degrees of stress experience an earlier menarche that those who experience less stress. Aegidius et al. (2011) explained that the hormones of estrogen and progesterone play a keep part in menstrual cycles and also react to stress. The connection between hormones associated with menarche and stress could more accurately explain the connections between the earlier onset of menarche and situations that would produce more stress during the life of a young girl.
Belsky et al. (2010) has a great number of flaws in their support of BSD theory. The research presented in Belsky et al. (2010) attempts to misattribute causation to correlation. The connections that were made were between the factors of parental harshness and early menarche were correlational as the observations were naturalistic and not a true experiment that could be manipulated to explain causation. In addition to the correlation-causation error, the connection between parental harshness and the absence of a father seems to be an irrational connection. The absence or presence of a father would seem to be unconnected to the degree of harshness that a girl experiences.
BSD theory contains its own theoretical flaws. BSD theory attributes earlier menarche to reproductive strategies as a result of natural selection to increase the likelihood of reproduction and continuation of the species. If this were the case, one would be able to notice a decrease in the age of menarche over time as it would be a trait that would advance the continuation of the species. Additionally, the earlier menarche would be seen as beneficial to the species. As the individual would reach menarche earlier and reproduce earlier by theory, the offspring would not be provided for properly and have a reduced chance of survival due to the immaturity of the mother.
The connection that can be made between the absence of a father and parental harshness is that of the level of stress that is experienced by the child. Stress levels seem to be a reoccurring factor among the studies of menarche determinants. The connections between risk-taking behavior and early menarche could be attributed to hormonal changes that could be examined by a detailed study of the bio-chemical changes that occur as a result of menarche. It would have been more interesting to see if there was more a connection between parental harshness and sexual risk taking if the age of menarche was controlled for as opposed to be a variable that was not adjusted for in the correlations present by Belsky et al. (2010). The connections between harshness and sexual behaviors would serve to explain that connection more directly if one were to conduct further research to determine the occurrences of risk-taking behaviors when menarche is statistically controlled for among participants to determine the impact of parental harshness upon risk-taking behaviors directly.
References
Aegidius, K. L., Zwart, J. A., Hagen, K. K., Dyb, G. G., Holmen, T. L., & Stovner, L. J. (2011). Increased headache prevalence in female adolescents and adult women with early menarche. The Head-HUNT Studies. European Journal Of Neurology, 18(2), 321-328. doi:10.1111/j.1468-1331.2010.03143.x
Belsky, J., Steinberg, L., Houts, R. M., & Halpern-Felsher, B. L. (2010). The development of reproductive strategy in females: Early maternal harshness → earlier menarche → increased sexual risk taking. Developmental Psychology, 46(1), 120-128. doi:10.1037/a0015549
Harden, K., & Mendle, J. (2012). Gene-environment interplay in the association between pubertal timing and delinquency in adolescent girls. Journal Of Abnormal Psychology, 121(1), 73-87. doi:10.1037/a0024160
Wierson, M., Long, P. J., & Forehand, R. L. (1993). Toward a new understanding of early menarche: The role of environmental stress in pubertal timing. Adolescence, 28(112), 913-924.
Mendle, J., Leve, L. D., Van Ryzin, M., Natsuaki, M. N., & Ge, X. (2011). Associations between early life stress, child maltreatment, and pubertal development among girls in foster care. Journal Of Research On Adolescence, 21(4), 871-880. doi:10.1111/j.1532-7795.2011.00746.x
