The first model tested the idea that parental nattering and explosive reactions during discipline confrontations were bidirectionally related to the target child's coercive exchanges with family members. Presumably, training parents to use more effective discipline would reduce children's antisocial behavior. The second model examined the contribution of antisocial behavior directly to disrupted peer relations and academic competence and indirectly to poor self-esteem. In the third model, it was hypothesized that inept parenting skills set a process in motion that causes the child to be rejected by peers, to fail academically, and to have low self-esteem. The findings provide consistent support for all three models. It is suggested that anger, rejection, poor self-esteem, and perhaps some forms of depression may have their beginnings in parental mismanagement. 90 references and 5 figures