Main Article Content
Book Review
Social contexts, age and juvenile delinquency: a community perspective
Abstract
Objective — Social disorganisation
of communities, family bonds, school bonds, the peer group and age, have
been shown to be related (either positively or negatively) to delinquency.
This study addressed gaps in the literature by (1) using a large and randomly
drawn sample of adolescents, within a large number of randomly selected communities;
(2) investigating the influence of community social disorganisation directly
on delinquency, while including in the same model the moderating effect of
community social disorganisation on the micro-contexts of family, school,
and peer group, as well as the direct effects of these micro-contexts; and
(3) including age as a variable likely to have both direct effects on delinquency
and moderating effects on the micro- and macro-level social contexts.
Method — The public-use data set
of Wave I of the (US) National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health was
used. The model was tested using hierarchical linear modelling and included
the social disorganisation of communities; adolescents' bonds to school and
family, family controls and involvement with a deviant peer group; and age
and its interaction with these social contexts.
Results — Community social disorganisation
was found to be positively related to delinquency, but effects of micro-level
contexts were not found to be moderated by social disorganisation. Family
bonds and controls, and school bonds, were negatively related to delinquency.
No effect of peer group was found. Age was found to have a direct effect;
effects of the interaction of age with family controls and age with school
bonds were also significant.
Conclusions — Results strengthen
those from previous studies (using more limited samples) which show that
integrated views of macro- and micro-level social contexts and developmental
trends are necessary to understand delinquency.
Journal of Child and
Adolescent Mental Health 2003, 15(1): 13-26
of communities, family bonds, school bonds, the peer group and age, have
been shown to be related (either positively or negatively) to delinquency.
This study addressed gaps in the literature by (1) using a large and randomly
drawn sample of adolescents, within a large number of randomly selected communities;
(2) investigating the influence of community social disorganisation directly
on delinquency, while including in the same model the moderating effect of
community social disorganisation on the micro-contexts of family, school,
and peer group, as well as the direct effects of these micro-contexts; and
(3) including age as a variable likely to have both direct effects on delinquency
and moderating effects on the micro- and macro-level social contexts.
Method — The public-use data set
of Wave I of the (US) National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health was
used. The model was tested using hierarchical linear modelling and included
the social disorganisation of communities; adolescents' bonds to school and
family, family controls and involvement with a deviant peer group; and age
and its interaction with these social contexts.
Results — Community social disorganisation
was found to be positively related to delinquency, but effects of micro-level
contexts were not found to be moderated by social disorganisation. Family
bonds and controls, and school bonds, were negatively related to delinquency.
No effect of peer group was found. Age was found to have a direct effect;
effects of the interaction of age with family controls and age with school
bonds were also significant.
Conclusions — Results strengthen
those from previous studies (using more limited samples) which show that
integrated views of macro- and micro-level social contexts and developmental
trends are necessary to understand delinquency.
Journal of Child and
Adolescent Mental Health 2003, 15(1): 13-26
