Abstract
Since 1950 there has been large-scale immigration to Western Europe, mainly from Muslim countries. This paper focuses on the degree of involvement in crime of ethnic minority boys as compared to indigenous boys and on the possible causes of these crime involvements. A random sample from three ethnic minority boys (Moroccans, Turks, Surinamese) was taken. A control group consisted of indigenous boys with a comparable socioeconomic background as the minority respondents. Data were gathered about self-report and recorded delinquency, family and school life, leisure time, traditionalism, migration problems, and socioeconomic status. It appears that the arrest rates among the minority youths are substantially higher than among the comparable Dutch boys. A number of explanations are considered: strain, lack of social control, cultural dissonance, and migration problems. Results show that only social control factors explain criminality within the groups, indicating that the causes of criminality among ethnic minority boys may essentially be the same as those among the indigenous boys.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Albrecht, H. J. (1984). Problems of policing ethnic minorities in the Federal Republic of Germany. In Brown, J. (ed.),Policing and Social Policy; The Cranfield-Wolfson Colloquium on Multi-ethnic Areas in Europe, Police Review Publication, London.
Albrecht, H. J. (1987). Foreign minorities and the criminal justice system in the Federal Republic of Germany.Howard J. Crim. Just. 6: 272–286.
Baerveldt, C. (1990).School en Delinquency (School and Delinquency), Gouda Quint, Arnhem.
Block, C. R. (1985). Race/ethnicity and patterns of Chicago homicide 1965–1981.Crime Delinq. 31: 104–116.
Bruinsma, G. J. N. (1990). De schaduwzijde van de sociale controle theorie (The dark side of social control theory). In Zwanenburg, M. A., and Smit, A. M. G. (eds.),Kleine criminaliteit en overheidsbeleid, Gouda Quint bv., Arnhem.
Budike, F. (1988).Reclassering en de tweede generatie allochtonen (Probation and the Second Generation Immigrants), Nederlandss Federatie voor Reclasseringsinstellingen, Den Bosch.
Campfens, H. (1979).The Integration of Ethno-cultural Minorities: A Pluralist Approach. The Netherlands and Canada: A Comparative Analysis of Policy and Programme, Ministry of Cultural Affairs, Recreation and Social Welfare, The Hague.
Chambliss, W. J., and Nagasawa, R. H. (1969). On the validity of official statistics: A comparative study of white, black and Japanese high-school boys.J. Res. Crime Delinq. 6: 71–83.
Chau, K. L. (1989). Socio-cultural dissonance among ethnic minority populations.Soc. Casework J. Contemp. Soc. Work 70: 224–230.
Craen, A. (1984). Policing and social policy in the multi-ethnic area of Genk. In Brown, J. (ed.),Policing and Social Policy; The Cranfield-Wolfson Colloquium on Multi-ethnic Areas in Europe, Police Review Publication, London.
Dickes, P. (1989). What kind of homogeneity for self-report delinquency items? In Klein, M. (ed.),Cross-National Research in Self-Reported Crime and Delinquency, Kluwer Academic, Dordrecht, pp. 249–267.
Essers, A. A. M., and van der Laan, P. H. (1988).Jeugd en Justitie (Yttouth and Justice), WODC, Ministerie van Justitie, Den Haag.
Ferrier, J. (1988). Casa Migrantes en Opo Fre Bakka (Casa Migrantes and Opo Fre Bakka).Tijdschrift Jeugdhulpverlening 16: 224–231.
Gerholm, T., and Litham, Y. G. (1988). The institutionalisation of Islam in the Netherlands, 1961–1986 (Introduction). In Gerholm, T., and Litham, Y. G. (eds.),The New Islamic Presence in Western Europe, Mansell, London.
Gifi, A. (1981).Non-linear Multi-variate Analysis, Department of Data Theory, University of Leiden, Leiden.
Gottfredson, M. R., and Hirschi, T. (1990).A General Theory of Crime, Stanford University Press, Stanford, Calif.
Gould, L. C. (1969). Who defines delinquency: A comparison of self-reported and officially reported indices of delinquency for three racial groups.Soc. Problems 16: 325–336.
Hindelang, M. J., Hirschi, T., and Weis, J. G. (1979). Correlates of delinquency: The illusion of discrepancy between self-report and official measures.Am. Social. Rev. 44: 999–1014.
Hindelang, M. J., Hirschi, T., and Weis, J. G. (1981).Measuring Delinquency, Sage, Beverly Hills, Calif.
Hirschi, T. (1969).Causes of Delinquency, University of California Press, Berkeley.
Jäger, J. (1984). Ethnic minorities and the police problems in Germany. In Brown, J. (ed.),Policing and Social Policy; The Cranfield-Wolfson Colloquium on Multi-ethnic Areas in Europe, Police Review Publication, London.
Junger, M. (1988). Racial discrimination in the Netherlands.Sociol. Soc. Res. 72: 211–216.
Junger, M. (1989a). Discrepancies between police and self-report data for Dutch racial minorities.Br. J. Criminol. 29: 273–284.
Junger, M. (1989b). Ethnic minorities, crime and public policy. In Hood, R. (ed.),Crime and Criminal Policy in Europe, Proceedings of a European colloquium, Centre for Criminological Research, University of Oxford, Oxford.
Junger, M. (1990a).Delinquency and Ethnicity. An Investigation on Social Factors Relating to Delinquency Among Moroccan, Turkish, Surinamese and Dutch Boys, Kluwer Law and Taxation, Deventer.
Junger, M. (1990b). Studying ethnic minorities in relation to crime and police discrimination: Reply to Ben Bowling,Br. J. Criminal. 30: 493–502.
Junger, M., and Polder, W. (1991).Achtergronden van delinquent gedrag onder jongens uit etnische minderheden (Background of Delinquent Behaviour Among Boys from Ethnic Minorities), WODC, Gouda Quint bv., Arnhem.
Junger, M., and Zeilstra, M. (1989).Deviant gedrag en slachtofferschap onder jongens uit etnische minderheden (Deviant Behaviour and Victimization Among Youths from Ethnic Minorities). WODC, Gouda Quint bv., Arnhem.
Junger-Tas, J. (1985). Allochtonen in Nederland: een inleiding (Immigrants in the Netherlands: An introduction).Justitiële Verkenningen, pp. 1–33.
Kaufman, W. J., and Verbraeck, H. T. (1986).Marokkaan en verslaafd: een studie naar randgroepvorming, heroïne gebruik en criminalisering (Moroccan and Addicted; A Study of Marginalization, Heroin Use and Crime), Afdeling Onderzoek ROVU, Gemeente Utrecht, Utrecht.
Maliepaard, R. (1985).Achtergronden van deviant gedrag bij allochtone jongeren (Background of Deviant Behaviour Among Immigrant Youth), Coordinatiecommissie Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek Kinderbescherming, Den Haag.
Merton, R. K. (1967).Social Theory and Social Structure, Collier-Macmillan, New York.
Mutsaers, M., and Boendermaker, L. (1990).Criminaliteitspreventie in het onderwijs (Crime Prevention at School), Ministerie van Justitie, WODC, K9, Den Haag.
Nadjafl Abrandabadi, A. H. (1983). L'évolution de la criminalté des étrangers en France.Rev. Peniten. Droit Pénal 2: 147–155.
Penninx, R. (1988).Minderheidsvorming en emancipatie; balans van kennisverwerving ten aanzien van Immigranten en woonwagenbewoners (Minority Formation and Emancipation; An Evaluation of Knowledge with Respect to Immigrants and Caravan Dwellers), Samsom, Alphen a/d Rijn.
Reubsaet, T. J. M., Kropman, J. A., and van Mulier, L. M. (1982).Surinaamse migranten in Nederland, de positie van Surinamers in de Nederlandse samenleving (Surinamese Migrants in the Netherlands; The Position of the Surinamese in Dutch Society), Instituut voor Toegepaste Sociologie, Nijmegen.
Risvanoglu-Bilgin, S., Brouwer, L., and Priester, M. (1986).Verschillend als de vingers van één hand (As Different as the Fingers of One Hand), COMT, Rijksuniversiteit van Leiden, Leiden.
Rooduijn, M. J., and Latten, J. J. (1986).De leefsituatie van Turken en Marokkanen in Nederland (The Situation of Turks and Moroccans in the Netherlands), CBS-publikaties, Staatsuitgeverij, Den Haag.
Sampson, R. J. (1985). Race and criminal violence: A demographically disaggregated analysis of urban homicide.Crime Delinq. 31: 47–82.
Stevens, P., and Willis, C. F. (1979).Race, Crime and Arrests, Home Office Research Study No. 58, HMSO, London.
Tennekes, J. (1989). Buitenlandse jongeren en cultuurconflict (Foreign youths and culture conflict).Migrantenstudies 5: 24–40.
Terlouw, G. J., and Suzanne, G. (1989).Een preventieproject in Gouda, eersle resultaten van een project voor M arokkaanse jongeren (A Prevention Project in Gouda, First Results of a Project for Moroccan Youth), WODC, Ministerie van Justitie, Den Haag.
Van den Berg-Eldering, L. (1981).Marokkaanse gezinnen in Nederland (Moroccan Families in the Netherlands), Samson, Alphen a/d Rijn,
Van der Erf, R. F. (1989). Beleidsrelevante migranten groepen demografisch gezien (Policy relevant migrants from a demographical point of view).Migrantenstudies 5: 11–24.
van der Hoeven, E. (1986).De jeugdpolitie: een observatie-onderzoek (The Youth Police: An Observation Study), CWOK, Den Haag.
Werdmölder, H. (1985). Randgroepvorming: marginalisering en etnitisering onder Marokkaanse jongeren (Marginal groups: marginalization and ethnic revival among Moroccan boys).Mens Maatschappij 60: 142–161.
Werdmölder, H. (1986).Van vriendenkring tot randgroep: Marokkaanse jongeren in een oude stadswijk (From Peer Group to Marginal Group: Moroccan Youths in an Old Neighborhood), Het Wereldvenster, Amsterdam.
WRR (Scientific Council for Government Policy) (1979).Etnische minderheden (Ethnic Minorities), WRR No. 17, Staatsuitgeverij, Den Haag.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Junger, M., Polder, W. Some explanations of crime among four ethnic groups in the Netherlands. J Quant Criminol 8, 51–78 (1992). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01062759
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01062759