As parental supervision declines, behavioral and psychological risks for young people increase. This study presents data outlining differences between regularly supervised and relatively unsupervised young adolescents in the ways they spend their time. Unsupervised teens' lifestyles are dramatically different from their supervised counterparts.…

The long hours that latchkey children are alone make them sexually vulnerable and provide them with increased opportunities to participate in sexual activity. Their sexual development is as likely influenced by peers, older siblings, television, movies, and books as by their parents. (IAH)

To help families of latchkey children, school personnel must understand the problems they face; identify families in need of assistance through parent and student surveys and interviews; and provide services to assist them, such as parent education programs, networking, discussion groups, survival skills training, and student assessment and…