Gender Differences: Comparisons with Males in the Pittsburgh Youth Study

Abstract

This chapter focuses on comparisons of self-reported offending and criminal career parameters between the PGS females and the male participants from the Youngest and Oldest cohorts from the Pittsburgh Youth Study (PYS). Specifically, direct comparisons are made for self-reported offending prevalence, frequency, persistence/continuity, age of onset, desistance, career duration, recidivism, chronic offending, and trajectories of offending. The results are mostly in line with prior studies, showing lower prevalence and frequency, shorter career length, higher desistance, and lower prevalence of recidivist and chronic offenders among the girls than the boys. Trajectory analyses indicated three trajectories for girls compared to four for boys, with the highest rate (offending) trajectory observed in boys not being present in girls.