“The root of all evil”? An exploratory study of money and delinquent involvement

Abstract

Modern criminological theory makes contradictory predictions about the possible effects of money on misbehavior. Strain theory suggests that the possession of monetary resources facilitates goal achievement and therefore reduces the likelihood of offending. In contrast, an anomie perspective would view possession of money as a prelude to greater drug use and delinquency. In this study we examine the effect of adolescents' resources—namely, money earned from work and received from parental allowance—on delinquent involvement and drug use. The results tend to be consistent with anomie theory, showing that money and its pursuit are associated positively with misbehavior. The implications for criminological theory are discussed.