Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

The Importance of the Family

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
The Many Faces of Youth Crime

Abstract

Regardless of the multiple theories concerning the aetiology or genesis of criminal behaviour in young people, the family, undoubtedly always plays a central role. This chapter will analyze the various ways in which families effect juvenile behaviour. In doing this we will examine the different hypotheses which attempt to explain the impact of family life on the behaviour of children and young people.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 39.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 54.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Notes

  1. 1.

    We tried to construct a common SES measure combining employment with the parents’ education level, but it was not possible to obtain a reliable consensus among participating countries concerning this measure.

  2. 2.

    Versatility is highly correlated both with minor delinquency (0.68) and with serious delinquency (0.70). Since versatility takes into account frequency as well as seriousness of delinquent behaviour we will use this measure in most analyses.

  3. 3.

    Anglo-Saxon: F  =  9.08, p  <  0.001; W-Europe: F  =  34.66, p  <  0.001; N-Europe: F  =  24.92, p  <  0.001; S-Europe: F  =  11.86, p  <  0.001; Post-Socialist: F  =  16.61, p  <  0.001; Latin America: F  =  2.78, p  <  0.025.

References

  • Acoca, L. 1999. Investing in girls: A 21st century strategy. Juvenile Justice,6, 3–13.

    Google Scholar 

  • Adler, F. (1975). Sisters in Crime. New York: McGraw-Hill.

    Google Scholar 

  • Austin, R. L. (1993). Recent trends in official male and female crime rates: The convergence controversy. Journal of Criminal Justice,21, 457–466.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Box, S. (1981) Deviance Reality and Society. London: Macmillan.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cain, M. (1990). Towards transgression: New directions in feminist criminology. International Journal of Sociology of Law,18, 1–18.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chesney-Lind, M. & Pasko, L. (2004). The Female Offender: Girls, Women and Crime. Thousand Oaks, CA (2nd ed.): Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chesney-Lind, M., & Sheldon, R. G. (2004). Girls, Delinquency, and Juvenile Hustice. Belmont, CA (3rd ed.): Wadsworth/Thomson.

    Google Scholar 

  • Corrado, R., Odgers, C. and Cohen, I. M. (2000). The Incarceration of female young offenders: Protection for whom? Canadian Journal of Criminology,42, 189–207.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cernkovich, S. A. & Giordano, P. C. (1987). Family relationships and delinquency. Criminology,25, 295–321.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Giordano, P. C., Cernkovich, S. A, & Pugh, M. D. (1986). Friendships and delinquency. The American Journal of Sociology, 91, 1170–1202.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Glueck, S. & Glueck, E. (1950). Unraveling Juvenile Delinquency. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gottfredson M. R. & T. Hirschi (1990), A General Theory of Crime. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Graham, J. and Bowling, B. (1995). Young people and crime. Home Office Research Study No. 145. London: HMSO.

    Google Scholar 

  • Grasmick, H. G., Tittle, C. R., Bursik, R. J. & Arneklev, B. J. (1993). Testing the core empirical implications of Gottfredson and Hirschi’s general theory of crime. Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency, 30, 5–29.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hagan, J., Gillis, A. R. & Simpson, J. (1985). The class structure of gender and delinquency: Toward a power-control theory of common delinquent behavior. American Journal of Sociology,90, 1151–1178.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hawkins, J.D., Lishner, D.M., Catalano, R.F., & Howard, M.O. (1986). Childhood predictors of adolescent substance abuse: towards an empirically grounded theory. Journal of Children and Contemporary Society,8, 11–47.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Heimer, K. (1995). Gender, race, and the pathways to delinquency: An interactionist analysis. In J. Hagan and R. D. Peterson (Eds), Crime and Inequality (pp. 140–173). Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hirschi, T. (1969). Causes of Delinquency. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Junger, M., Terlouw, G. J., & van der Heijden, P. G. M. (1995). Crime, accidents and social control. Criminal Behavior and Mental Health, 5, 386–410.

    Google Scholar 

  • Junger-Tas, J. (1995), Het raadsel van de Vrouwencriminaliteit. Nemesis essays, (September), 21–44.

    Google Scholar 

  • Junger-Tas, J. (2009). Challenges to criminology in the 21st century. Criminology in Europe: Newsletter of the European Society of Criminology,8(3), 3 and 13–16.

    Google Scholar 

  • Junger-Tas, J., & Decker, S. H. (Eds.) (2006). International Handbook of Juvenile Justice. New York: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Junger-Tas, J. & Terlouw, G. J. (1991). Het Nederlandse publiek en het criminaliteitsprobleem. Delikt en Delinkwent – Tijdschrift voor Strafrecht, 21, 256–268 and 363–387.

    Google Scholar 

  • Junger-Tas, J., Marshall, I. H., & Ribeaud, D. (2003). Delinquency in an International Perspective: The International Self-Report Delinquency Study (ISRD). The Hague: Kugler.

    Google Scholar 

  • Olweus, D. (1996). Bully/victim problems at school: Facts and effective interventions. Reclaiming Children and Youth: Journal of Emotional and Behavioral Problems,5, 15–22.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kornhauser, R. R. (1978). Social Sources of Delinquency: An Appraisal of Analytic models. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • LaGrange, T. C. & Silverman, R. A. (1999). Low self-control and opportunity: Testing the general theory of crime as an explanation for gender differences in delinquency. Criminology,37, 41–72.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • LaGrange, R., & White, H. (1985). Age differences in delinquency: A test of theory. Criminology, 23, 19–45.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Loeber, R., & Stouthamer-Loeber, M. (1986). Family factors as correlates and predictors of juvenile conduct problems and delinquency. In M. Tonry & N. Morris (Eds.), Crime & Justice: An Annual Review of Research, Vol. 7 (pp. 29–149). Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Loeber, R., Farrington, D. P., Stouthamer-Loeber, M., & Van Kammen, W.B. (1998). Antisocial Behaviour and Mental Health Problems. New Jersey/London: LEA publications.

    Google Scholar 

  • Loeber, R., & Dishion, T. (1983). Early predictors of male delinquency: A review. Psychological Bulletin, 94, 68–99.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Maccoby, E. E. & Jacklin, C. N. (1980). Sex differences in Aggression: a Rejoinder and Reprise. Child Development, 51, 964–980.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Masson, K., Karyotis, S. & de Jong, W. (2002). De straat aan de jeugd: Een ontwikkelingsonderzoek naar drie jaar ‘Thuis op Straat’. Rotterdam: Aksant.

    Google Scholar 

  • McCord, J. (1979). Some child-rearing antecedents of criminal behavior in adult men. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology,37, 1477–1486.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Moffitt, T. E., Caspi, A., Rutter, M. & Silva, P. A. (2001). Sex Differences in Antisocial Behaviour. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Morash, M. (1986). Gender, Peer Groups and Delinquency. Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency,23, 43–67.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Patterson, G. R. (1995). Coercion as a basis for early age of onset for arrest. In J. McCord (Ed.), Coercion and punishment in long-term perspective (pp. 81–105). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rankin, J. H. & Kern, R. (1994). Parental attachments and delinquency. Criminology,32, 495–515.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Riley, D., & Shaw, M. (1985). Parental Supervision and Juvenile Delinquency. London: Home Office Research and Planning Unit.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rivera, F. P. (1995). Crime, violence and injuries in children and adolescents: common risk factors? Criminal Behavior and Mental Health,5, 367–386.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rothbaum, F., & Weisz, J. R. (1994). Parental caregiving and child externalizing behavior in nonclinical samples: A meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin,116, 55–74.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rowe, D. C., Vazsonyi, A. T., & Flannery, D. J. (1995). Sex differences in Crime: do means and within-sex variation have similar causes? Journal of research in Crime and Delinquency,32, 84–100.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rutter, M. & Giller, H. (1983). Juvenile Delinquency: Trends and Perspectives. Harmondsworth: Penguin Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rutter, M., Giller, H., & Hagell, A. (1998), Antisocial Behaviour by Young People. Cambridge, MA: Cambridge University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sampson, R. J., & Laub, J. H. (1993). Crime in the Making: Pathways and Turning Points Through Life. Cambridge, MA: Havard University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sampson, R. J., Morenoff, J. D., & Earls, F. (1999). Beyond social capital: Spatial dynamics of collective efficacy for children. American Sociological Review,64, 633–660.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sampson, R. J., Raudenbush, S. W., & Earls, F. (1997). Neighborhoods and violent crime: A multilevel study of collective efficacy. Science,277, 918–924.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Simon, R. J. (1975). The Contemporary Woman and Crime. Washington DC: National Institute of Mental Health.

    Google Scholar 

  • Smith, P. K., Morita, Y., Junger-Tas, J., Olweus, D., Catalano, R. & Slee, P. (1999). The Nature of School Bullying: A Cross-National Perspective. London/New York: Routledge

    Google Scholar 

  • Smith, C. & Krohn, M. D. (1995). Delinquency and family life among male adolescents: The role of ethnicity. Journal of Youth and Adolescence,24, 69–93.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Steffensmeier, D., Bell, K. E. & Hayne, D. L. (2005) Gender and serious violence. Untangling the role of friendship sex composition and peer violence. Youth Violence and Juvenile Justice,5, 235–253.

    Google Scholar 

  • Stattin, H., & Romelsjö, A. (1995). Adult mortality in the light of criminality, substance abuse and behavioral and family risk factors in adolescence. Criminal Behavior and Mental Health,5, 279–312.

    Google Scholar 

  • Thornberry, T. P., Lizotte, A. J., Krohn, M. D., Smith, C. & Porter, P. K. (2003). Causes and consequences of delinquency: Findings from the Rochester Youth Development Study. In T. P. Thornberry, T. P. & M. D. Krohn (Eds.), Taking Stock of Delinquency: An Overview of Findings from Contemporary Longitudinal Studies (pp. 11–46). New York: Kluwer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Van der Laan, A. M. & Blom, M. (2006). Jeugddelinquentie. Risico’s en bescherming; bevindingen uit de WODC Monitor Zelfgerapporteerde Jeugdcriminaliteit 2005. Boom, Den Haag.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wiatrowski, M. D., Griswold, D. B. & Roberts, M. K. (1981). Social control theory and delinquency. American Sociological Review,46, 525–541.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wikström, P.-O. (1998). Communities and crime. In M. Tonry (Ed.), The Handbook of Crime and Punishment (pp. 269–302). Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wilmers, N., Enzmann, D., Schaefer, D., Herbers, D., Greve, W. & Wetzels, P. (2002). Jugendliche in Deutschland zur Jahrtausendwende: Gefährlich oder gefährdet? Ergebnisse wiederholter, repräsentativer Dunkelfelduntersuchungen zu Gewalt und Kriminalität im Leben junger Menschen 1998–2000. Baden-Baden: Nomos.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wilson, J. Q. & Herrnstein, R. J. (1985). Crime and Human Nature. New York: Simon and Schuster.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wright, J. P. & Cullen, F. T. (2001). Parental efficacy and delinquent behavior: Do control and support matter? Criminology,39, 677–706.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wright, J. P., Cullen, F. T., & Wooldredge, J. (2000). Parental social support and juvenile delinquency. In G. L. Fox & M. L. Benson (Eds.), Families, Crime, and Criminal Justice: Contemporary Perspectives on Family Research, Volume 2 (pp. 139–161). Greenwich, CT: JAI Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Yoshikawa, H. (1994) Prevention as cumulative protection effects of early family support and education on chronic delinquency and its risk. Psychological Bulletin,115, 28–54.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands

    Josine Junger-Tas

Authors
  1. Josine Junger-Tas
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2012 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Junger-Tas, J. (2012). The Importance of the Family. In: The Many Faces of Youth Crime. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-9455-4_7

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation