Chapter 5 Developmental Views of Delinquency Juvenile Delinquency Chapter 5 Developmental Views of Delinquency

Chapter Objectives 1. Compare and contrast the two forms of developmental theory. 2. Trace the history and influences on developmental theory. 3. Know the principles of the life course approach to developmental theory. 4. Be familiar with the concept of problem behavior syndrome. 5. Identify the paths and directions of the delinquent life course.

Chapter Objectives 6. Distinguish between adolescent-limited and life-course persistent offenders. 7. Articulate the principles of Sampson and Laub’s Age-Graded life course theory. 8. Be able to define the concept of the latent trait. 9. Know the principles and assumptions of the General Theory of Crime. 10. Discuss both the strengths and weaknesses of the General Theory of Crime.

Kia’s Story Kia was born in Vietnam, and moved to the U.S. when he was 11 Had problems in middle school when he was 14 Was placed in an intervention program Kia was at risk for school disciplinary action Kia’s parents moved to the U.S. several years before Kia

Developmental Theory Developmental Theory The Developmental Theory of crime and delinquency looks at the onset, continuity and termination of a delinquent career Developmental Theory says that criminality is a dynamic process, influenced by social experiences as well as individual characteristics There are 2 distinct Developmental Theories: The Life Course View Latent Trait Theory

Developmental Theory The Life Course View suggests that delinquent behavior is a dynamic process, influenced by individual characteristics as well as social experiences, and that the factors that cause antisocial behaviors change dramatically over a persons life span: According to life course view, even as toddlers, people begin relationships and behaviors that will determine their entire life course Disruptions in life’s major transitions can be destructive and ultimately promote criminality

Developmental Theory The Latent Trait view suggests that delinquent behavior is controlled by a “Master Trait” present at birth or soon after that and remains stable and unchanging throughout a persons lifetime The propensity to commit delinquent acts is constant, but the opportunity to commit them is constantly changing

The Life Course View The Life Course View As children we learn to conform to social rules and function effectively in society As young adults we are expected to begin thinking about careers, leaving our parents homes, entering into relationships, marry and have our own families These transitions are expected to take place in an orderly fashion

The Life Course View The Life Course View Because of family, environment or personal problems this may not happen Sometimes they occur too early, such as engaging in pre-mature sexual relations Sometimes they occur too late, such as delayed graduation from high school due to incomplete work This is what often occurs with teen aged mothers, as pregnancy will disrupt education and career development

The Life Course View The Life Course View These disruptions in life’s major transitions can be destructive and ultimately promote criminality Those who are already at risk because of socioeconomic problems or family dysfunction are the most susceptible The cumulative impact of these disruptions sustains criminality into adulthood

The Life Course View The Life Course View The Developmental Process Positive life experiences may help some kids desist from delinquency Negative life experiences cause them to resume their activities Delinquent Careers are also interactional People are influenced by the behavior of those around them, and in turn, they influence the behavior of others…

Interactional Behavior Those constantly in trouble are rejected by their peers They seek a new peer group that accepts their behavior This causes an even greater rejection by their peers Interactional Behavior I This increases their involvement in antisocial behavior

The Life Course View The Life Course View As people mature, the factors that influence their behavior changes At first, the family relations may be most influential In adolescence, school and peers are most important In adulthood, vocational achievement and marital relations are most important

The Life Course View The Glueck Research A cornerstone of Life Course theories is the research by the Gluecks in the 1930 while at Harvard Using longitudinal research methods they attempted to determine the factors that predicted persistent offending The Gluecks focused on early onset of delinquency as a predictor of a delinquent career

The Life Course View The Glueck Research Social factors related to persistent offending The most important is family relations, both quality of discipline and emotional ties Adolescents raised in large, single parent families with limited incomes and limited educational achievement was the most vulnerable to delinquency

The Life Course View The Glueck Research Personal factors related to persistent offending When considering body type, intelligence and personality they found that physical and mental factors played a role in determining behavior Children with low intelligence, a background of mental disease and a powerful physique (mesomorph) were the most likely to become persistent offenders

Life Course Concepts Age of Onset The early onset of deviance strongly predicts more frequent, varied and sustained criminality later in life This may start with truancy, cruelty to animals, lying and thefts Early starters have: Poor parenting followed by Deviant behaviors which leads to Involvement with delinquent groups The earlier the onset the more likely a kid will engage in serious delinquency for a longer period of time

Life Course Concepts Adolescent Limited versus Life Course Persistent Offenders Adolescent Limited get involved with antisocial activities early in life and then begin to phase out of their delinquent behaviors as they mature They are typical teenagers who get into scrapes and engage in rebellious teenage behavior with their friends (recreational drug use)

Life Course Concepts Adolescent Limited versus Life Course Persistent Offenders Life Course Persistent remain high rate offenders into young adulthood They are raised in dysfunctional families and have neurological problems, which predispose them to antisocial behavior Low verbal abilities inhibits reasoning skills, learning ability and school achievement They mature faster and engage in early sexuality and drug use (pseudomaturity)

Life Course Concepts Problem Behavior Syndrome Delinquency is but one of the many social problems faced by at risk youths Problem Behavior Syndrome includes many behaviors such as family dysfunction, substance abuse, smoking, early sexual encounters and pregnancy, educational underachievement, suicide attempts, sensation seeking and unemployment See Exhibit 5.1 - PBS

Problem Behavior Syndrome

Life Course Concepts Multiple Pathways Delinquents may travel more than a single road in their delinquent careers Some are chronic offenders Some commit delinquent acts one or twice and then stop Some increase their offending as they age Some specialize in a certain kind of delinquent act Some engage in a variety of delinquent acts

Life Course Concepts Multiple Pathways Rolf Loeber and his associates identified 3 pathways to a delinquent career: The Authority Conflict Pathway The Covert Pathway The Overt Pathway

Life Course Concepts Multiple Pathways The Authority Conflict Pathway This pathway begins at an early age with stubborn behavior This leads to deviance and disobedience Finally there is authority avoidance (staying out late, truancy and running away)

Life Course Concepts Multiple Pathways The Covert Pathway This pathway begins with minor, underhanded behavior (lying, shoplifting) that leads to property damage (setting fires, damaging property) This behavior escalates to more serious forms of criminality (joyriding, larceny, fencing, passing bad checks, using stolen credit cards, drug dealing, B&E)

Life Course Concepts Multiple Pathways The Overt Pathway This pathway escalates to aggressive acts beginning with aggression (annoying others, bulling) which leads to physical altercations (Fighting) and then to violence (assaults and robbery)

Life Course Concepts Continuity of Crime and Delinquency Continuity of crime and delinquency states that the best predictor of future criminality is past criminality Children who are repeatedly in trouble during their early adolescence will generally still be antisocial in their middle and late teens and as adults They continue to offend because they lack the social survival skills needed to find work or develop interpersonal relationships They are constantly exposed to delinquent peers or family who engage in and support their activities

Life Course Theories Age Graded Theory Sampson and Laub’s most important contributions were identification of Turning Points in a criminal career Turning Points are critical life events that enables adult offenders to either desist from or solidify their criminality

Life Course Theories Age Graded Theory Two Critical Turning Points toward Desisting from Criminality: Adolescents who are at risk for delinquency can live conventional lives if they can find good jobs or achieve successful careers Adolescents who have had significant problems with the law are also able to desist from delinquency if as adults that become attached to a spouse who supports and sustains them regardless of their past (reduces exposure to deviant peers)

Life Course Theories Age Graded Theory Developing Social Capital Social Capital is positive relations with individuals and institutions (marriage or career) that supports conventional behavior and inhibit deviant behavior Just like building financial capital improves the chances for economic success, building social capital supports conventional behavior and inhibits deviant behavior

Life Course Theories Age Graded Theory Social Capital Having a successful marriage creates feelings of self worth and encourages others to trust the person A successful career inhibits delinquency by creating a stake in conformity

Life Course Theories Age Graded Theory Testing Age Graded Theory Children who are raised in two-parent families are more likely to grow up to have happier marriages Youths who accumulate social capital in childhood (doing well in school or having a close family) are also the most likely to maintain steady work as adults Delinquent youths who enter the military, serve overseas, and receive veteran’s benefits enhance their occupational status

The Latent Trait View The Latent Trait View Rowe, Osgood and Nicewander proposed the concept of Latent Traits This assumes that a number of people in the population have a personal attribute or characteristic that controls their inclination or propensity to commit delinquent acts These traits are present at birth or established early in life and remain stable over time

The Latent Trait View The Latent Trait View Latent traits that contribute to delinquency: Defective intelligence, impulsive personality, genetic abnormalities, physical and chemical functioning of the brain, environmental influences on the brain, drugs, chemicals, and injuries Those individuals who carry one of these traits have a higher risk of becoming criminal

The Latent Trait View The Latent Trait View According to the latent trait view, the propensity to commit delinquency is stable, but the opportunity to commit delinquency changes over time People age out of crime because there are fewer opportunities to commit crime and greater inducements to remain straight As an example, people marry, have children, and maintain employment This leaves little time and opportunity to engage others outside the family to abuse substances or commit crime

The Latent Trait View General Theory of Crime The Act and the Offender (Gottfredson & Hirschi) Modifies and redefines some principles of Hirschi’s Control Theory (CH 4), while integrating the concepts with biosocial, psychological, routine activities and rational choice: Delinquent acts are committed when people see them as being advantageous (Rational Choice) Delinquency is rational and predictable (Routine Activities) Delinquent offenders are predisposed to commit crimes (Latent Traits)

The Latent Trait View General Theory of Crime What Makes People Delinquency Prone? Gottfredson and Hirschi point to a persons level of self control Low self control develops early in life and remains stable into adulthood People with low self control tend to be impulsive, insensitive to other peoples feelings, physical, risk takers, short-sighted and non-verbal

The Latent Trait View General Theory of Crime What Makes People Delinquency Prone? They are more likely to enjoy risky, exciting, thrilling behaviors with immediate gratification (delinquent acts) They derive satisfaction from, “money without work, sex without courtship, and revenge without court delays”

The Latent Trait View General Theory of Crime What Makes People Have Poor Self Control? Gottfredson and Hirschi trace the roots of poor self control to inadequate child rearing practices Parents who are unwilling to monitor a child’s behavior, recognize a deviant act when it occurs, and punish that behavior will produce children who lack self control

The Latent Trait View General Theory of Crime Questions and Criticisms Circular reasoning How do we know when people are impulsive? When they commit crime Are all criminals impulsive? Yes, or else they would not have broken the law

The Latent Trait View General Theory of Crime Questions and Criticisms Personality Disorder Is low self control really a personality disorder (antisocial personality) that produces delinquency? Low self direction may be a better predictor of criminality than impulsivity or lack of self control

The Latent Trait View General Theory of Crime Questions and Criticisms Ecological Individual Differences If the crime rate in L.A. is higher than the crime rate in Albany does that mean that there are more impulsive people in L.A.? Gottfredson and Hirschi defend this by saying there are more delinquent opportunities in L.A.

The Latent Trait View General Theory of Crime Questions and Criticisms Racial and Gender Differences Are males more impulsive than females? Is one race more impulsive than another? Gottfredson and Hirschi point to child rearing practices in the respective races However, they overlook institutional racism, poverty and relative deprivation

The Latent Trait View General Theory of Crime Questions and Criticisms People Change Remember the view is that the person doesn’t change, the opportunities change However, people constantly change depending upon the people they associate with, and thereby does their maturity status

The Latent Trait View General Theory of Crime Questions and Criticisms Parental Influence Impulsive children may commit less crime if their social bonds are strengthened Improved parenting skills can increase a child’s self control, resulting in a decrease of delinquent activity

The Latent Trait View General Theory of Crime Social Factors Children who lack self-control and live in high-crime areas may be more inclined to antisocial activities than youth with similar self control who reside in areas that work to maintain collective efficacy and are relatively crime free.

The Developmental View Evaluating The Developmental View The Developmental View is that a delinquent career must be understood as a passage along which people travel, that it has a beginning and an end and that events and life circumstances influence the journey Life Course Theories emphasize the influence of changing interpersonal and structural factors, people change along with the world they live in Latent Trait Theories say that an individuals behavior is linked less to personal change than to changes in the surrounding world

Developmental Theory and Delinquency Prevention There have been a number of policy-based initiatives based on premises of developmental theory Some programs aim to prevent delinquency in the long run by helping parents improve their parenting skills This is another form of family support that has shown some success in preventing juvenile delinquency