Parental Competencies as Familial Protective Factors in Adolescent Substance Use Prevention: A Scoping Review

Parents play an important role in adolescent substance use prevention, yet the competencies underlying their protective role remain inconsistently conceptualized and measured. This scoping review aimed to map parental competencies as modifiable family-level protective factors for adolescent substance use prevention. Following Joanna Briggs Institute methodology and PRISMA-ScR guidance, nine electronic databases were searched from inception to 20 July 2026. Peer-reviewed original studies addressing parental competencies relevant to substance use prevention among adolescents aged 9–19 years were included. Competencies were mapped according to their conceptual domains and evidence roles. Thirty-two publications were included, identifying 11 parental competency domains. Relational bonding and family involvement (90.6%), prevention communication (87.5%), monitoring and supervision (62.5%), and rules, boundaries, and expectations (53.1%) were most frequently represented. Competencies were more often targeted in interventions than directly measured or examined in relation to adolescent substance-use outcomes, and measurement approaches varied considerably across studies. Parental competencies relevant to adolescent substance use prevention encompass multiple relational, communicative, supervisory, and behavioral capacities. The findings highlight important gaps between intervention content, competency measurement, and outcome-related evidence and provide a foundation for developing competency-based prevention interventions and measurement tools.