Involvement In Delinquent Activities Research Articles

Network-based intervention strategies to reduce violence among homeless

Violence is a phenomenon that severely impacts homeless youth who are at an increased risk of experiencing it as a result of many contributing factors such as traumatic childhood experiences, involvement in delinquent activities, and exposure to perpetrators due to street tenure. Reducing violence in this population is necessary to ensure that the individuals can safely and successfully exit homelessness and lead a long productive life. Interventions to reduce violence in this population are difficult to implement due to the complex nature of violence. However, a peer-based intervention approach would likely be a worthy approach as previous research has shown that individuals who interact with more violent individuals are more likely to be violent, suggesting a contagious nature of violence. We propose uncertain voter model to represent the complex process of diffusion of violence over a social network that captures uncertainties in links and time over which the diffusion of violence takes place. Assuming this model, we define violence minimization problem where the task is to select a predefined number of individuals for intervention so that the expected number of violent individuals in the network is minimized over a given time frame. We also extend the problem to a probabilistic setting, where the success probability of converting an individual into nonviolent is a function of the number of “units” of intervention performed on them. We provide algorithms for finding the optimal intervention strategies for both scenarios. We demonstrate that our algorithms perform significantly better than interventions based on popular centrality measures in terms of reducing violence. Finally, we use our optimal algorithm for probabilistic intervention to recruit peers in a homeless youth shelter as a pilot study. Our surveys before and after the intervention show a significant reduction in violence.

The influence of low self-control on violent and nonviolent delinquencies: a study of male adolescents from two Chinese societies

Low self-control is theorized to be a key correlate of delinquency. Using a nonadjudicated sample (N = 1057) from Hong Kong and Macau, the influence of self-control on self-reported violent and nonviolent delinquencies was investigated using Grasmick’s self-control scale. The influences of demographics and self-control on delinquency were also examined. Findings indicate that these adolescents are more likely to engage in overall delinquency, particularly violence, if they are older and if they are less educated. Age is the only demographic predictor of nonviolent delinquency. Risk-seeking behaviors and self-centeredness have significant influences on both violent and nonviolent delinquencies, while low frustration tolerance and preference for cognitive activities are only associated with an increased level of violent misconduct. These findings highlight the overall significant influence of self-control on adolescent delinquency in Chinese adolescents. Suggestions are offered to enhance adolescents’ self-control as a way to reduce their tendency to involvement in delinquent activities.

Effects of Delinquency on Alcohol use Among Juveniles in Europe: Results from the ISRD-2 Study

The existence of a correlation between the use of alcohol and juvenile delinquency has long been acknowledged. In order to evaluate the strength and the characteristics of this association in various cultural contexts, we analysed data collected as part of the International Self-Report Delinquency Study- 2 (ISRD-2). The sample consisted of of young people (N = 57,771) of both sexes, aged between 12 and 16 years, in 25 European countries. After estimating the prevalence of alcohol consumption among young people involved in property offences and violent offences, we assessed the degree to which these types of delinquency were associated with the use of alcohol in the 25 countries. In addition, we attempted to ascertain the influence of belonging to various types of deviant groups on alcohol use. To this end, we used a Mokken Scale Analysis. With this method, we constructed a scale of “gangness” and correlated the scores with alcohol use among juveniles. The results yielded by the present study indicate that alcohol use and delinquency are closely related with one another. In particular, we observed that alcohol consumption seems to be strongly influenced by involvement in delinquent activities. The nature and characteristics of these relationships suggest that the associations between alcohol use and delinquency are reciprocal rather than one-directional. Consequently, alcohol use constitutes a risk factor for criminal behaviour. Likewise, involvement in delinquency increase the risk of alcohol consumption and, especially, of alcohol abuse.

The Linkage Between Deviant Lifestyles and Victimization

A small but growing body of research has demonstrated the merits of linking victimization to a life course perspective. Although cross-sectional studies have shown a strong association between deviant lifestyles and victimization, few have assessed this association from the life course perspective. Drawing data from a prospective, longitudinal study, the current study examines this association in a group of high school adolescents. Results from latent growth curve models show that (a) victimization and deviant lifestyles, measured as involvement in delinquent activities, affiliation with deviant peers, and time spent on unsupervised activities change over time; and (b) change in deviant lifestyle patterns leads to change in victimization patterns over time.

Predictors of Sexually Coercive Behavior in a Nationally Representative Sample of Adolescent Males

Data from male participants in the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health are used to examine childhood predictors of late adolescent and early adulthood sexually coercive behavior and adolescent mediators of these relationships. A path analysis shows that experiencing sexual abuse as a child has a direct effect on perpetrating subsequent coercion that is partially mediated by early sexual initiation. Involvement in delinquent activities in adolescence was the only additional significant predictor of sexually coercive behavior and completely mediated the relationship between physical abuse in childhood and later sexual coercion. Of note, more than half of men reporting sexually aggressive acts had no history of childhood victimization, so pathways to sexually coercive behavior for this group remain unidentified. In addition to the universal prevention approaches currently in use in the field, these findings suggest that targeted prevention programs need to be formulated for youth with histories of childhood sexual or physical abuse.

Multidimensional Self-Concept

The present research examined the relationship between self-concept and level of involvement in delinquent activities of 1327 (612 males, 715 females) years 8—12 high school students. Through cluster analysis, participants were identified as having either high or low involvement in delinquent activities from scores on a self-report measure of delinquency. Three multidimensional areas of self-concept (classroom, peer and confidence) were investigated, because of previous findings indicating discrepancies in these three dimensions for adolescent involvement in delinquent activities. Four, two-way multi-variate analyses of variance were conducted across the three self-concept dimensions for Gender, Year Level, and involvement in Delinquent Activities. Students highly involved in delinquent activities reported significantly lower classroom, peer and confidence self-concepts. For gender and year level effects, males reported significantly higher confidence self-concept while females scored significantly higher on peer self-concept. There were significant differences among year levels with a general decline in confidence self-concept with age but for classroom and peer self-concept, no clear age trends were evident. The results indicate the importance of considering multidimensional self-concept when examining adolescents' involvement in delinquent activities and incorporating self-concept enhancement strategies in intervention programs.

Custodial interrogation, false confession and individual differences: A national study among Icelandic youth

The main aims of the study were twofold. Firstly, to ascertain a national base rate of custodial interrogation, confession, denial and false confession among Icelandic youth (age group 16–24 years), and secondly, to investigate psychological and criminological factors associated with false confession. The participants were 10,472 students in further education in Iceland. All colleges of secondary education in Iceland were represented. As a part of a large national study into the background, behaviour, and mental health of adolescents, each pupil was asked about custodial interrogation, confessions, denials, and false confessions. Almost one-fourth (18.6%) of the participants stated, that they had been interrogated by the police in relation to a suspected offence, of whom 53% said they had confessed truthfully. A small minority of those interrogated (7.3% of those interrogated and 1.6% of the total sample) claimed to have made false confessions to the police. The false confession rate was highest (12%) among those interrogated more than once and lowest (3%) among those interrogated only once. A Discriminant Function Analysis found that false confessions during interrogation were mostly associated with the extent of involvement in delinquent activities, the involvement of friends in delinquency, and depression.

Reputation Enhancement and Involvement in Delinquency Among High School Students

The present research explored the relationship between high school students' self-reported delinquency and the importance of their social reputations. The prevalence of self-reported delinquency was investigated in a sample of 965 (467 males, 498 females) Years 8 to 12 students attending high schools in Brisbane and Perth, Australia. The results revealed that males are significantly more prone to all forms of delinquent behaviour than their female peers. Most forms of delinquency appeared to peak at Year 9, with the exception of drug use which increased with age. A cluster analysis was performed on the prevalence data and students were separated into two groups: students with high and low involvement in delinquency. The reputations of students with high and low delinquency involvement were investigated. Students identified as having low involvement in delinquency desired a more conforming reputation than those with high involvement. Females also desired a more conforming reputation than their male counterparts. In relation to year level, junior high school students were less conforming than senior high school students. Ways to address the powerful nature of adolescent reputations and the link between reputational status and involvement in delinquent activities are highlighted.

Self-definitions of Gang Membership and Involvement in Delinquent Activities

There is significant disagreement among researchers as to the appropriate conceptual and operational definitions of gang membership. One of the key issues involves the validity of allowing respondents to identify themselves as gang members. This research examines the construct validity of gang membership by examining the relationship between various methods of operationalizing gang membership and delinquent involvement. The results demonstrate that there are important consequences to the method utilized to measure gang membership. Individuals reporting membership in organized gangs were far more likely to report that their gangs possess the characteristics typically associated with traditional street gangs. Likewise, the respondent's self-identification had a strong impact on both the group's and the individual's criminal behavior. Overwhelmingly, persons who considered themselves to be members of an organized gang were more apt to engage in all types of delinquent activities.

IN THE COMPANY OF WOMEN: STRUCTURE AND AGENCY IN A REVISED POWER‐CONTROL THEORY OF GENDER AND DELINQUENCY*

A power‐control theory of the gender‐delinquency relationship draws attention to differences in familial control practices. We extend the theory to address how parental agency and support for dominant attitudes or schemas influence male as well as female delinquency. This extension emphasizes that differences in structure, particularly between more and less patriarchal households, result in different family practices, especially for mothers and sons. We find that variation in mothers' agency within the home affects their sons' support of conventional views, in particular, attitudes about the gendered nature of activities, risk preferences, and beliefs about impunity, as well as their involvement in delinquent activities. Thus, the agency of mothers in less patriarchal families is an underappreciated source of reduced delinquency among sons.

SCHOOL BONDING, RACE, AND DELINQUENCY*

While there is considerable evidence that blacks experience school in qualitatively distinct ways from whites, there has been a general failure to examine racial variation in the impact of school variables on juvenile misconduct. The purpose of this research is to describe the manner in which school bonding affects delinquent conduct, focusing in particular on the role of the school in the delinquent involvement of black youths. Our orientation is primarily a control theory one that suggests that the greater the degree of school bonding the lesser the likelihood of involvement in delinquent activities. Our review of the literature leads us to expect differential levels of bonding by race and across varying racial environments of schools, with resulting differential effects on delinquency. On the basis of a neighborhood sample of 942 adolescents, we identijj seven distinct dimensions of school bonding. The analysis reveals that blacks are at least as strongly bonded to the school as whites, that our model explains comparable amounts of variance in delinquency across race‐sex subgroups, and that the racial composition of the school is generally unimportant in conditioning the effect of school bonding on delinquency. While our findings are generally supportive of control theory, a model that purports to be invariant across race, gender, and socioeconomic boundaries, we caution that such a conclusion may be both premature and mistaken. We discuss the implications of these findings and suggest that they be interpreted within a framework that also considers family and peer bonding.

The relationship between social skills deficits and juvenile delinquency

Although social skills training is now a common form of intervention with young offenders, there is limited evidence that social skills deficits are directly related to delinquency. We examined the relationship between social skills and degree of past involvement in delinquent activities among a group (N = 37) of young offenders. Social skills were assessed both by self-report and by a behavioural test. The results indicate no relationship between social skills deficits, as assessed by either method, and degree of delinquent behaviour. Delinquency and social skills also exhibited quite different patterns of relationship with measures of personality, lending further support to the conclusion that social skills deficits as currently construed are not causally related to delinquency.

Risk Factors for Delinquency and Illicit Drug Use from Adolescence to Young Adulthood

This study examines the interrelationships and predictors of involvement in delinquent activities and illicit drug use over a nine-year interval, from adolescence (age 15–16) to young adulthood (age 24–25) in a cohort representative of adolescents formerly enrolled in grades 10 and 11 in public secondary schools in New York State (N =1,004). Persistence of illicit drug use in this period of the life-cycle is greater than for delinquency and is higher among men than among women. Convergences and divergences in intrapersonal and interpersonal predictors of drug use and delinquency are analyzed. Adult illicit drug use is much better predicted by adolescent illicit drug use, especially among men. Among women, early drug use predicts later delinquent behavior. However, illicit drug use in the period from adolescence to early adulthood selectively predicts adult participation in one type of delinquent behavior, namely theft, among men and women, but has no effect on interpersonal aggression. Different risk factors in adolescence other than drug use predict continued delinquent involvement among men and women. In particular, depression plays an important role for women and family factors for men. Lifestyle factors subsequent to adolescence, especially failure to enter the conventional roles of adulthood, such as marriage and continuous employment, are important predictors of continued illicit drug use in adulthood but not of delinquency. Delinquency among males and illicit drug use among females appear to be subject to common etiological factors and may play similar roles in the lives of young people. Convergence between the findings and results reported by others are discussed.

Family Factors as Correlates and Predictors of Juvenile Conduct Problems and Delinquency

A meta-analysis was performed of concurrent and longitudinal studies on the relation of family factors to juvenile conduct problems and delinquency. Analyses of longitudinal data show that socialization variables, such as lack of parental supervision, parental rejection, and parent-child involvement, are among the most powerful predictors of juvenile conduct problems and delinquency. Medium-strength predictors include background variables such as parents' marital relations and parental criminality. Weaker predictors are lack of parental discipline, parental health, and parental absence. The effect of these factors seems to be about the same for boys and for girls. Analyses of concurrent studies comparing delinquents with nondelinquents, and aggressive children with nonaggressive children, largely parallel these findings. Data from concurrent normal samples, however, show less importance for parental child socialization practices and relatively more importance for the child's rejection of the parent and the parent's rejection of the child. A small proportion of families produces a disproportionate number of delinquents. The presence of one child with delinquency, aggression, or covert conduct problems increases the probability that other children in the family will exhibit those behaviors. Deficiencies in parenting skills are associated with the seriousness of the child's delinquency. Treatment studies demonstrate that systematic changes in parenting behaviors can lessen the frequency of a child's conduct problems and that of siblings and, to a lesser extent, reduce involvement in delinquent activities.

Juvenile Delinquency: The Canadian Perspective

This paper describes the current state of juvenile delinquency in Canada. Recent statistics indicate that approximately one percent of Canadian youth are apprehended by the law for involvement in delinquent activities. Three percent of these are placed in training schools where each province spends considerable money and effort to provide good residential programs. The majority of the youths who are apprehended, however, are let go without penalty so the present thrust across the country is to involve the larger community in diversion, education and probation programs.

VALUE ORIENTATIONS AND DELINQUENCY INVOLVEMENT

Abstract Current theories of juvenile delinquency have produced a bifurcation of explanations based on supposed class‐linked differences among adolescents of various socioeconomic strata. The present study challenges many of the assumptions upon which current delinquency theory/research is based and suggests that future examinations of delinquency involvement be focused on the similarities in value orientations of delinquent adolescents across socioeconomic strata. Specifically, self‐report data obtained from a representative sample of 412 male high school students in a mid‐western SMSA indicate that (1) subscription to “conventional value orientations” inhibits involvement in delinquent activities. (2) adherence to “subterranean value orientations” serves to induce involvement in delinquent behavior patterns. and (3) these relationships remain significant when the effects of socioeconomic status and level of perceived legitimate opportunities are held constant.

Effects of a rational–emotive mental health program on poorly achieving, disruptive high school students.

The effectiveness of a rational-emotive mental health program was examined. Eleventh and 12th-grade high-risk and failure- and misconduct-prone black and Hispanic high school students (N = 40) were given five weekly sessions of rational-emotive education over a full semester. The dependent measures were grade point average, incidents of disruptive behavior, and class cuts. Comparisons were made with alternate treatment and no-treatment controls. The results revealed differential effects among the treatment groups, with the rational-emotive groups showing greatest improvement on all dependent variables over an extended period of time. Implications and suggestions for further research are discussed. The high failure and drop-out rate of secondary school students in economically disadvantaged areas has been noted with grave concern by investigators interested in this problem (Taber, 1963). Students demoralized by continuing poor achievement discover after prematurely leaving school that problems are compounded as failure to obtain a high school diploma decreases the chances for obtaining employment. Consequently, an individual's likelihood for involvement in delinquent activities is heightened (Glasser, 1965). Although studies with drop-out-prone secondary school students are numerous (e.g., Bates, 1968; Gilliland, 1968; McGowan, 1968), most have been either unsuccessful or poorly designed (Anderson, 1969). In considering approaches to decrease school failure among high-risk students, we decided to initiate a systematic cognitive/behavioral group therapy that had been successful with other maladaptive behaviors (Karst & Trexler, 1970; Sharma, 1970; Meichenbaum, Note 1). In particular, rational-emotive therapy, a system based on the educational model and emphasizing the teaching and application of self-realization rules, seemed to be ideally suited as an intervention strategy that might