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Abstract
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VioLit summary:
OBJECTIVE:
The aim of this paper by Lennings was to present a modification of the Kendall Wilcox Self-Control Scale for Children and to adapt the scale for use with an adolescent population. The study was based upon the notion that self-control, or lack thereof, was the most useful and significant concept in the treatment of aggression.
METHODOLOGY:
The author employed a quasi-experimental cross-sectional design with two different samples. The first was a non-probability sample of 33 university students at Macquarie University in Australia, and the second was a non-probability sample of 35 delinquents in a juvenile detention center. The original 33-item Self-Control Scale for Children offered an item pool that had high reliability and that could discriminate between clinical and non-clinical populations. A shortened version of the scale, consisting of 16 items for self-administration, was constructed based upon the face validity of the items for use with a juvenile population, and was the subject of this research. The first study involved administration of the Schalling Impulsivity and Sensation Seeking Scales, The Self-Control Scale, the Tipton and Worthington Self-Efficacy Scale and a variety of time perspective scales that the author was in the process of developing. Analysis included correlations and examination of means. The second study involved administration of the Self-Control Scale, an intelligence test, a reading test, tests of impulsivity and sensation seeking, and tests of self-efficacy and time awareness. Included in this study was a measure of type of crime--aggressive oriented or property oriented. Aggressive oriented crimes included rape, murder, assault with a weapon, assault causing bodily harm and armed robbery involving weapon discharge. Subjects were divided into two groups--those with a known history of violent crime (n=14) and those without (n=21). Analyses included correlations, t-tests and MANOVA.
FINDINGS/DISCUSSION:
For the first study, the new Self-Control Scale was found to have fairly low alpha reliability, but somewhat higher test-retest reliability. Self-control was found to correlate negatively with impulsivity and sensation seeking, but positively with self-efficacy and time awareness. For the delinquent population, self-control correlated significantly only with self-efficacy and time awareness. The reliability of the scale increased from 0.63 to 0.78, suggesting reasonable internal consistency for use with this clinical population. The overall MANOVA result was significant, although only the self-control scale was able to differentiate between the two groups. Because of the small sample size, the self-control variable was examined on its own, with a t-test finding significant differences between the aggressive and the non-aggressive groups on this measure. The author concluded that the self-control scale proved to be highly effective in differentiating between the violent and the non-violent juvenile offender, and that the scale was better able to perform this task than were conventional indices such as intelligence, impulsivity and sensation seeking. The scale was suggested as a useful tool for future research.
EVALUATION:
This research presents an interesting look at the ability of a self-control scale to differentiate between the aggressive and the non-aggressive juvenile offender. However, the very small sample sizes and use primarily of correlational analysis precludes much generalization or application of the findings to other contexts or populations. Also the often unclear and confusing writing makes the paper difficult to follow. No alternative explanations were offered for the findings, and little attention was given to a discussion of implications of the results for treatment and prevention planning. A definition of self-control was not provided, and whilst the revised scale was found to have reasonable reliability, the reader is never informed of the contents of the scale. A more thorough discussion of the exact nature of the scale would have been helpful. (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 - Foreign Countries
KW - Australia
KW - Juvenile Aggression
KW - Juvenile Inmate
KW - Juvenile Delinquency
KW - Juvenile Offender
KW - Juvenile Treatment
KW - Survey Instrument
KW - Instrument Development
KW - Instrument Reliability
KW - Aggression Treatment
KW - Offender Treatment
KW - Inmate Treatment
KW - Juvenile Self-Control |