This study examines whether models of parenting competence derived from studies of adult mothers are descriptive of adolescent mothers as well. Fifty-eight adolescent mothers were recruited from an alternative high school. All subjects completed questionnaires on self-esteem, life events, social support, well-being, and maternal efficacy. In addition, they completed an emotion interpretation task, and were videotaped in feeding, structured play, and unstructured play episodes with their child. Associations among the variables life stress, social support, well-being, self-esteem, maternal efficacy, and the capacity to interpret infant emotion were examined. The utility of these variables as predictors of maternal behavior was also examined. Age-related individual differences among adolescent mothers were also explored, as were differences across interaction episodes. Results indicated that determinants of parenting competence among adolescents are patterned differently than would be predicted by existing models of adult parenting competence. For example, adolescents who received more support from the baby's father displayed less optimal parenting behavior. Results are discussed in the context of adolescent development and in terms of their utility for intervention design.