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Process-based model in adolescence. Analyzing police legitimacy and juvenile delinquency within a legal socialization framework

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Abstract

The empirical evidence on the process-based model of self-regulation shows that procedural justice evaluations and the perceived legitimacy of authorities impact law-abiding behavior. However, few studies analyze this theory from the perspective of adolescent legal socialization. The present study aims to examine the process-based model and other socializing agents such as family, school and peers that may have an effect on it. The sample comprised 2041 youths residing in Spain, aged between 13 and 18 years. The data form part of the Third International Self-Report Delinquency Study (ISRD-3). Multiple linear regression analyses were conducted to predict police legitimacy and juvenile delinquency. The results reveal that police legitimacy perceptions are not only influenced by procedural justice, but also by parental monitoring, school attachment, and delinquent peers. Moreover, perceptions of police legitimacy, parental monitoring, and delinquent peers predict juvenile delinquency. These findings complement and add new explanatory factors to the process-based model.

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Notes

  1. Although some studies have used a delinquency scale (Cavanagh and Cauffman 2015), most have tested the degree of regulatory compliance (Reisig et al. 2014) and cooperation with the authorities (Dirikx and Van den Bulck 2014).

  2. Bottoms and Tankebe (2012) suggest that the obligation to obey is not part of the legitimacy concept. Considering an authority to be legitimate is only one of the factors leading to feeling the obligation to obey, among others such as fear or dull compulsion.

  3. This item refers to noncriminal antisocial behavior.

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Acknowledgments

This research was carried out with funding from the regional government of Castilla-La Mancha, Spain (PPOII-2014-009-P). The authors thank the ISRD-3 Steering Comittee, as well as the Spanish ISRD-3 members Cristina Rechea and Raquel Bartolomé for their support in this research. The authors also thank other members of the Criminology Research Centre for participating in data collection.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Criminology Research Centre, University of Castilla-La Mancha, Benjamín Palencia, Campus Universitario s/n, 02071, Albacete, Spain

    Olalla Baz & Esther Fernández-Molina

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  1. Olalla Baz
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  2. Esther Fernández-Molina
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Correspondence to Esther Fernández-Molina.

Appendix

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Table 4 Zero-order correlations among variables
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Table 5 Variance inflation factors (VIF) for both linear regression models
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Baz, O., Fernández-Molina, E. Process-based model in adolescence. Analyzing police legitimacy and juvenile delinquency within a legal socialization framework. Eur J Crim Policy Res 24, 237–252 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10610-017-9357-y

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