Development Of Delinquency Research Articles

Parental attachment and Chinese adolescents' delinquency: The mediating role of moral disengagement

There is substantial literature documenting the negative association between secure parental attachment and lower adolescent delinquency, but little is known about the mediating mechanisms (i.e., how does parental attachment relate to delinquency?) underlying this relation. The present study examined whether secure parental attachment would be indirectly related to lower adolescent delinquency through lower adolescent moral disengagement. A total of 1766 adolescents (44% male; mean age = 14.25 years, SD = 1.54) living in an urban area of southern China completed anonymous questionnaires regarding parental attachment, moral disengagement and delinquency. After controlling for gender, age, socioeconomic status, and school variable, it was found that secure parental attachment was negatively associated with adolescent delinquency and this negative association was fully mediated by the extent of adolescent moral disengagement. These findings contribute to an understanding of the mechanisms underlying the development of adolescent delinquency and have important implications for intervention.

Cognitive impulsivity and the development of delinquency from late childhood to early adulthood: Moderating effects of parenting behavior and peer relationships.

Cognitive impulsivity may increase children's risk of developing delinquent behavior. However, the influence of cognitive impulsivity may depend on social environmental risk factors. This study examined the moderating effect of late childhood parenting behaviors and peer relations on the influence of children's cognitive impulsivity on delinquency development across adolescence and early adulthood, while taking possible interactions with intelligence also into account. Delinquent behavior of 412 boys from the Pittsburgh Youth Study was measured annually from ages 13 to 29 years with official arrest records. Cognitive impulsivity (neurocognitive test scores) and intelligence were assessed at age 12-13. Parenting behaviors (persistence of discipline, positive reinforcement, and parental knowledge), peer delinquency, and peer conventional activities were assessed between ages 10 and 13 years. Results showed that, while controlling for intelligence, the influence of youths' cognitive impulsivity on delinquency depended on their parents' behaviors. An interaction was found among cognitive impulsivity, intelligence, and peer delinquency, but instead of cognitive impulsivity, the effect of intelligence on delinquency was particularly moderated. Overall, findings suggest that when there was moderation, high cognitive impulsivity and low intelligence were associated with an increased probability for engaging in delinquency predominantly among boys in a good social environment, but not in a poor social environment.

Harsh parenting, parasympathetic activity, and development of delinquency and substance use.

Stress response systems are thought to play an important role in the development of psychopathology. In addition, family stress may have a significant influence on the development of stress response systems. One potential avenue of change is through alterations to thresholds for the activation of stress responses: Decreased threshold for responding may mark increased stress sensitivity. Our first aim was to evaluate the interaction between thresholds for parasympathetic nervous system (PNS) responding, operationalized as resting respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA), and harsh parenting in the prediction of development of delinquency and adolescent substance use (resting RSA as a biomarker of risk). The second aim was to evaluate if resting RSA changes over time as a function of harsh parenting and stress reactivity indexed by RSA withdrawal (altered threshold for stress responding). Our third aim was to evaluate the moderating role of sex in these relations. We used longitudinal data from 251 children ages 8-16 years. Mother-reports of child delinquency and RSA were acquired at all ages. Adolescents self-reported substance use at age 16 years. Family stress was assessed with child-reported harsh parenting. Controlling for marital conflict and change over time in harsh parenting, lower resting RSA predicted increases in delinquency and increased likelihood of drug use in contexts of harsh parenting, especially for boys. Harsh parenting was associated with declining resting RSA for children who exhibited greater RSA withdrawal to stress. Findings support resting PNS activity as a moderator of developmental risk that can be altered over time.

The Influence of Culture-Specific Personality Traits on the Development of Delinquency in At-Risk Youth.

The association between culture-specific personality variables and family factors, and juvenile delinquency, was assessed in a sample of 402 adolescents of Chinese ethnicity between 12 and 17 years of age (Mage = 15.13, SD = 1.41; 135 girls), a subgroup of whom were considered at risk for juvenile delinquency owing to addictive behavior tendencies. Culture-specific personality variables were assessed using the Chinese Personality Assessment Inventory-Adolescent version Interpersonal Relatedness factor. The General Function subscale of the Chinese version of the Family Assessment Device was utilized to assess the influence of perceived levels of family functioning. Both culture-specific personality variables and non-culture-specific familial factors were significantly and negatively associated with self-reported juvenile delinquency (p < .001). However, in a sample of at-risk adolescents, only a culture-specific variable measuring orientation toward the family was able to predict self-reported juvenile delinquency (p < .001). Implications of the current results are discussed.

Delinquency in Adolescent Girls: Using a Confluence Approach to Understand the Influences of Parents and Peers.

Determining the interdependence of family and peer influences on the development of delinquency is critical to defining and implementing effective interventions. This study explored the longitudinal relationship among harsh punishment, positive parenting, peer delinquency, and adolescent delinquency using data from a sub-sample of the Pittsburgh Girls Study. Participants were 622 adolescent girls (42% European American, 53% African American); families living in low-income neighborhoods were oversampled. After controlling for the effects of race, living in a single parent household, and receipt of public assistance, harsh punishment and peer delinquency in early adolescence were positively related to delinquency in mid-adolescence. No significant main effects of positive parenting or interaction effects between parenting and peer delinquency were observed. Thus, the effects of harsh parenting and peer delinquency are independent and perhaps additive, rather than interdependent. Results indicate the continued importance of targeting both parenting and peer relationships to prevent delinquency in adolescent girls.

Co-occurrence of antisocial behavior and substance use: Testing for sex differences in the impact of older male friends, low parental knowledge and friends' delinquency

Delinquency and substance use (SU) are commonly comorbid during adolescence. In the present study we investigate this co-morbidity with 3 main objectives: 1. Evaluate reciprocal relationships between delinquency/SU across early adolescence. 2. Assess the impact of older male friends, low parental knowledge and friends' delinquency on subsequent development and inter-relationships of delinquency and SU. 3. Evaluate sex differences in these relationships.We applied cross-lagged structural equation models to the analysis of a longitudinal sample (n=3699). Findings demonstrated: (1) At ages 13–14 delinquency predicted SU more so than vice versa but effects became equal between ages 14 and 15. (2) Low parental knowledge and friends' delinquency predicted delinquency and SU. Older male friends predicted ASB. (3) Sex differences were present. For example, in the absence of antisocial friends low parent knowledge at age 12 indirectly predicted increased age 15 SU for girls more than boys.

IMPACTO SOCIAL DO USO ABUSIVO DE DROGAS PARA DEPENDENTES QUÍMICOS REGISTRADOS EM PRONTUÁRIOS

Pesquisa descritiva transversal realizada em uma unidade de reabilitação para dependentes químicos. O objetivo foi identificar o impacto social do uso abusivo de drogas para dependentes químicos e os dados foram coletados em 350 prontuários referentes ao ano de 2010. Os resultados demonstraram que 60% dos dependentes possuíam idade entre 20 e 39 anos, o diagnóstico clínico de maior prevalência foi transtornos mentais e comportamentais devido ao uso de múltiplas drogas e de outras substâncias psicoativas com início precoce. Decorrentes da dependência química, 54% dos casos tiveram problemas relacionados à família, 29,4% conflitos conjugais, 63,2% prejuízos laborais, 20,6% cometeram infração penal e 26,6% praticaram violência. Conclui-se que a dependência química transforma os relacionamentos familiares, causa prejuízos laborais e sociais, contribui para o desenvolvimento da delinquência e da violência sendo necessário adequar e investir em políticas públicas para a reestruturação desses sistemas.

‘The Antithesis of Humankind’

ABSTRACTThis article explores the political, economic, media and social reactions to the Sex Pistols' Anarchy Tour of December 1976. A critical reading of the sociological concept of ‘moral panic’ is used to examine the ways in which responses to the Sex Pistols were related to the notion of post-war decline, immorality, delinquent youth and the changing nature of the British working class. The responses to the Anarchy Tour constitute a further episode in the cycle of ‘moral panics' that emerged in British society in connection with the development of youth culture, juvenile delinquency and popular music. The exploration that follows posits the view that although ‘moral panic’ is useful for understanding particular aspects of popular music, it also conceals the complexity of the differing responses of political/social groups to the appearance of such phenomena. The article also forms a critique of recent revisionist characterizations of Britain in the 1970s. The ‘moral panic’ surrounding the Sex Pistols was in part ‘socially constructed’ by the media, yet reactions by trade unionists, students, feminists and socialists show that concerns about British society in 1976 were not confined to religious pressure groups, conservative media commentators and political elites.

‘Hen's teeth and horse's toes’: the adult onset offender in criminology

Several scholars have argued that the prevalence of an adult onset of offending necessitates research and theoretical explanation, whereas other scholars remain skeptical about the existence of offenders who onset in adulthood. The reconciliation of this debate holds significant implications for the sort of criminological theory the field should value and pursue. For instance, persuasive empirical evidence of adult onset offenders supports symmetrical theories of crime, such as Sampson and Laub's age-graded theory, which allow for both positive and negative behavioral change in adulthood. In contrast, the lack of such evidence supports asymmetrical theories of crime, such as Gottfredson and Hirschi's general theory of crime, which argue that change is one way, as crime uniformly declines after an initial peak in adolescence. Using the Cambridge Study in Delinquency Development and the Rochester Youth Development Study, as well as between and within-subjects analysis, we find no evidence of true adult onset offenders, thus supporting asymmetrical theories of crime and questioning the utility of continued research and discussion on this supposed ‘type’ of offender

Behavioral Disorders in Adolescents with Mild Intellectual Disability

AbstractAdolescents with intellectual disabilities, due to deficits in their intellectual functioning, are exposed to even greater risk of developing various forms of behavioral disorders.Goal: to determine the risk of emergence of behavioral disorders in adolescents with mild intellectual disability.Respondents: adolescents (211) with mild intellectual disability, educational staff in special secondary schools (39) and members of the expert team (5).Methods: descriptive method, method of comparative analysisProcedures: survey and semi-structured interviews with the educational staff and expert team.Statistical data processing: Windows Tool R x C for contingency tables analysis and Fisher Exact Test, and as significant were considered the differences with significance level of pResults: with the statistical data processing we came to the conclusion that the school achievements affect the emergence of undesired behavior (pConclusion: we came to the conclusion that different forms of behavioral disorders appear in students and they haven't been sufficiently informed about the possible consequences and they rarely voluntarily initiate conversation in respect of the problem. The behavio- ral disorders in this category of students are conditioned by multiple factors by the type of housing, the duration of the period in a stu- dent home, the school achievements, the age and the sex.Key words: behavioral disorder, adolescence, mild intellectual disability(ProQuest: ... denotes non-US-ASCII text omitted.)IntroductionBehavioral disorders are a problem in society that needs to be paid more attention to. Various forms of deviant behavior are also often encountered in people with intellectual disabilities.Different groups affect the personality of the individual, and this effect can be manifested as a risk factor or protective factor.The risk factors affect the increased likelihood of emergence of deviant forms of behavior, while the protective factors reduce this impact by changing the way the young person reacts in a particular situation. The risk factors and protective factors exist in all social contexts in which social interaction takes place. These social contexts are called domains, and they include family, school, peers and social environment (1).The family represents the primary group in which, beginning from the birth, the foun- dations of the future individual are being shaped and the process of education and socialization takes place. Within the family, the child builds its moral character, the intellectual predispositions, as well as the first characteris- tics of its personality are being developed and a picture is being created about its own values and the values of other people (2). The dysfunctional families are generally poor, single parent families and families with a large number of children. These are usually socially isolated, and the parents have insufficiently developed communication skills and empathy and lower opinion of their own skills (3). The school also represents a very important factor in the development of a person and its socialization in general. If an adolescent has been positively accepted in school, it develops a feeling of security and it has a greater level of academic achievements; on the contrary the school becomes a source that generates inconveniences. The failure in school increases the risk of leaving school, using illegal substances, development of delinquency and other forms of deviant behavior (4). Socializing with peers is very important for the development of a personality, especially in the period of adolescence. …

The role of empathy in the development of aggression and delinquency in adolescents

The role of empathy in the development of aggression and delinquency in adolescents

The development of delinquency during adolescence: a comparison of missing data techniques

Conclusions on the development of delinquent behaviour during the life-course can only be made with longitudinal data, which is regularly gained by repeated interviews of the same respondents. Missing data are a problem for the analysis of delinquent behaviour during the life-course shown with data from an adolescents’ four-wave panel. In this article two alternative techniques to cope with missing data are used: full information maximum likelihood estimation and multiple imputation. Both methods allow one to consider all available data (including adolescents with missing information on some variables) in order to estimate the development of delinquency. We demonstrate that self-reported delinquency is systematically underestimated with listwise deletion (LD) of missing data. Further, LD results in false conclusions on gender and school specific differences of the age–crime relationship. In the final discussion some hints are given for further methods to deal with bias in panel data affected by the missing process.

Equivalent harm? The relative roles of maltreatment and exposure to intimate partner violence in antisocial outcomes for young adults

Abstract This study investigates whether child maltreatment and exposure to intimate partner violence (IPV) have an equivalent effect on young adult violence and criminality, including adult relationship violence, and whether experiencing both types of family violence enhances the risk of adverse outcomes. The study utilizes data from the Rochester Youth Development Study (RYDS), a cohort study of the development of delinquency and other youth problems in a community sample of 1000 diverse urban youth, followed from age 14 to adulthood, to bolster our knowledge of these phenomena. Responses to well-validated measures come from a combination of interviews with parents and youth and from official records. Results generally indicate that maltreated children are more likely to demonstrate adult antisocial behavior than children exposed to IPV. Thus, our results indicate that both types of family violence are not equivalently harmful in the development of antisocial and violent behavior. In addition, the results indicate that experiencing both forms of family violence increases the risk of some antisocial outcomes in young adulthood compared to experiencing either one in isolation. Implications for research and services are considered.

Self-esteem and delinquency in South Korean adolescents: Latent growth modeling

This study examined the inter-related development of self-esteem and delinquency across three years. Participants were 3449 Korean high school adolescents (age M = 15.8, SD = 0.42, 1725 boys, 1724 girls) from Korea Youth Panel Study (KYPS), in 2005–2007, nationally representative of Korean adolescents. Latent growth modeling was employed for analysis. Results showed that: 1) there were linear growth in self-esteem and delinquency. Moreover, there were significant individual differences in initial level of self-esteem and delinquency, and rate of change in self-esteem and delinquency; 2) the analyses of panel data did not support Kaplan's theory by showing that delinquency was negatively associated with growth in self-esteem among adolescents. Cultural implications are illustrated. Theoretical and practical implications of the results are discussed.

Policy Recommendations to Prevent Youth Violence and Substance Abuse and Foster Positive Youth Development among Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Adolescents

Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders represent diverse groups with unique histories and rich cultural traditions. They also confront significant challenges in health and education, experiencing disproportionally higher rates of violence and substance abuse. Policy recommendations regarding youth delinquency, substance abuse, and positive development include: (1) application of a socio-ecological approach; (2) utilization of a positive youth development and restorative approach; (3) development of culturally based interventions; (4) the building of capacity for youth-serving organizations; (5) development and strengthening of collaborations; (6) juvenile justice reforms; and (7) encouragement of research that disaggregates ethnic groups and gives greater consideration to community perspectives.

Explaining the development of adolescent violent delinquency

The etiological aspects of a structural dynamic model of delinquent development are analysed with the first five waves (age 13 to 17) of the German prospective panel study Crime in the Modern City, carried out since 2002 in Duisburg. By applying a combined Markov and growth curve model, the developments of structural explanatory factors and self-reported violent delinquency and their reciprocal as well as direct and indirect relations could be examined within one statistical model. Social macro-structure was considered within the notion of a wider social milieu, with social value orientations as the subjective component. The longitudinal analysis confirmed the conceptual distinction between distal and proximate structural factors: distal hedonistic value orientations marked the strongest pathway to violent delinquency via proximate pro-violent peer attachment and pro-violent norms. Although school bonds and parental education style were not of greater importance here, they nevertheless mediated a pathway into conformity with traditional value orientations as the structural background. A latent class growth analysis reproduced a by-now common pattern of six delinquency trajectories.

Delinquent behaviour patterns in adolescence: Development and associated personality traits

ABSTRACTThe present study examined subgroups of delinquent adolescents and the short‐term development of delinquency and personality traits characterizing these subgroups. Participants were girls and boys examined at the beginning of the 8th grade and followed up at the end of the 9th grade (n = 901). Four delinquency subgroups were identified for boys and for girls on both occasions, primarily characterized by well‐adjusted behaviour, minor delinquency, serious delinquency or violent delinquency. The findings indicated that most adolescents displaying a certain delinquency pattern in 8th grade displayed a similar delinquency pattern in 9th grade. However, boys and girls involved in minor delinquency, and boys involved in violent delinquency, were more likely than expected to develop serious delinquency over time, indicating a progression towards more serious and versatile delinquency. Delinquent adolescents were in general more disinhibited, less adjusted and conforming, and more aggressive than well‐adjusted adolescents, whereas boys in the serious delinquency subgroup and girls in the violent delinquency subgroup also were characterized by somatic anxiety. The findings support making a distinction between antisocial behaviour subgroups and indicate some personality traits associated with certain subgroups of delinquent adolescents. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley &amp; Sons, Ltd.

Developmental Trajectories of Girls’ and Boys’ Delinquency and Associated Problems

Developmental trajectories in delinquency through adolescence were studied along with family and peer relationship problems. Drawing from eight waves of data over seven years, we conducted trajectory analyses with a sample of 746 students (402 girls; 344 boys). Analyzing girls and boys together, a five-class model emerged: 60% of the adolescents rarely reported delinquency; 27.7% reported low initial levels with moderate levels of delinquency over time; 6% in the late onset group reported initially low and rising levels of delinquency; 5% in the early onset group reported moderate initial levels which increased and then decreased in later adolescence. A small group of only boys (1.3%) labeled chronic reported high initial levels of delinquency that increased over time. Group comparisons revealed problems in internalizing, parent and peer relationship problems. The findings provide direction for early identification and interventions to curtail the development of delinquency.

Serious, Minor, and Non-Delinquents in Early Adolescence: The Impact of Cumulative Risk and Promotive Factors. The TRAILS Study

This study uses a social-ecological approach to the development of delinquency. The authors emphasize that a balance between eliminating risk and enhancing protection across domains is essential in reducing problems and promoting competence. The cumulative risk and promotive effects of temperament, family and school factors in preadolescence were examined on different groups of delinquents (based on self-report) in early adolescence. Data from the first two waves of the TRAILS study (N = 2,230) were used. The results provide evidence for a compensatory model that assumes main effects of risk and promotive factors on problem behavior. Accumulation of risks in preadolescence promoted being a serious delinquent in early adolescence, with the strongest effects for temperament. Accumulation of promotive effects decreased being a delinquent and supported being a non-delinquent. Furthermore, evidence is found for a counter-balancing effect of cumulative promotive and risk factors. Exposure to more promotive domains in the relative absence of risk domains decreased the percentage of serious delinquents. Our results did not support a protective model. Implications for prevention and intervention are discussed.

Coming and going: Explaining the effects of residential and school mobility on adolescent delinquency

Over the past half century, a large body of theoretical and empirical work in sociology and other social sciences has emphasized the negative consequences of mobility for human development in general, and youth outcomes in particular. In criminology, decades of research have documented a link between residential mobility and crime at both the macro and micro levels. At the micro level, mobility is associated with delinquency, substance use, and other deviant behaviors among adolescents. However, it is possible that the relationship between mobility and delinquency may be due to selection on pre-existing differences between mobile and non-mobile youth in their propensity for delinquency, and prior studies have not adequately addressed this issue. Specifically, the families that are most likely to move are also the most disadvantaged and may be characterized by dynamics and processes that are conducive to the development of delinquency and problem behavior in their children. This study uses data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 to assess the impact of residential and school mobility between the ages of 12 and 17 on delinquency and substance use. Random effects models control for selection on both observed and unobserved differences. Results show that mobility and delinquency are indeed spuriously related. Implications for future research on mobility and outcomes are discussed.