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Abstract
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VioLit summary:
OBJECTIVE:
The aim of this study by Brownfield and Sorenson was to examine the extent to which the concept of self-control and social control elements explain juvenile delinquency.
METHODOLOGY:
A quasi-experimental design was employed. Secondary data from the Richmond Youth Study was used since the data already included measures for all the concepts. The data included information on a sample of 1,586 males who were entering their junior and senior year of high school in 1964. Three types of information were included in the data: school records, police records and student questionnaires. The school records provided academic achievement test scores and grade point average. The police records provided the number of offenses committed by the youth. The questionnaire provided measures of Hirshi's original version of social control theory and Gottfredson and Hirshi's latest definition of self-control.
The authors summarized Gottfredson and Hirshi's definition of self-control into six interrelated elements of self-control. The first characteristic of a person with high self-control was having the "ability to defer gratification." This means that they do not lack the ability to control their impulses. The second characteristic was having the "tendency to be diligent, tenacious, or persistent in a course of action." It was suggested that crimes allow the deviants to satisfy desires with out achieving them through legitimate normative means (e.g,. stealing rather than working for money). The third element was "to be cautious, cognitive, and verbal," as opposed to a deviant who would be more physical (less likely to solve disputes verbally), in need of excitement, and a risk taker. The fourth characteristic was having a "tendency to engage in long-term pursuits or relationships, such as a career or marriage." The fifth characteristic was the "tendency to possess or value cognitive or academic skills." The authors noted that most crimes occur spontaneously and often only require the use of basic motor skills (e.g., to hurt someone or to take something). The last characteristic was the "tendency to be egotistical, unconcerned or insensitive to the pain and needs of other people." The authors argued that deviants often fail to consider the consequences of their behavior (e.g., victim's pain and suffering or loss).
Factor analysis was used to find reliable measures of self-control and the four components of social control. Multiple regression was used to test for their effects.
FINDINGS/DISCUSSION:
Factor analysis resulted in two factors that provided measures for both theories. The first factor was noted to be a measure of "educational achievement or expectations and measures of orientation toward time." These variables were used to make up an additive scale resulting in an index of self-control. The second factor was a measure of the boys relationship with his parents which was more consistent with parental attachment, a concept from social control theory. The remaining variables were treated as separate measures of involvement, attachment to school, and commitment because the variables treated as a factor had a low reliability score. In addition to the two scales and three social control variables, three variables were added to the analysis: 1) an independent variable measuring peer delinquency, 2) an independent variable measuring belief, 3) and a dependant variable of self-reported delinquency.
Out of both the self-control and social control variables, self-reported delinquency was only effected by parental attachment, involvement (time spent on homework), and beliefs (getting around the law if you can). Peer delinquency had the strongest effect on both self-reported delinquency and official delinquency. Self-control did not effect self-reported delinquency but it had almost the same effect as peer delinquency had on official delinquency. Official delinquency was also effected by two other social control variables, belief and involvement; they both had inverse effects. (CSPV Abstract - Copyright © 1992-2007 by the Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence, Institute of Behavioral Science, Regents of the University of Colorado)
KW - Late Adolescence
KW - Senior High School Student
KW - Male Delinquency
KW - Male Crime
KW - Male Offender
KW - Social Control Theory
KW - Juvenile Self-Control
KW - Juvenile Offender
KW - Juvenile Crime
KW - Juvenile Delinquency
KW - Delinquency Causes
KW - Crime Causes |