No abstract

A sample of 2,453 grade school children were followed into young adulthood through record sources. Teacher interviews provided information about low-peer-status children that was assessed in relation to subsequent delinquency for both sexes and young adult criminality for males. A multivariate design evaluated the joint effects of social class, a measure of family disturbance, and childhood problem behavior factors as antecedents of delinquency. Childhood aggression emerged as the most prominent antecedent factor for males but not for females. Social class and family disturbance were associated with aggression but did not have significant direct effects on delinquency. Aggression was related to severity of delinquency. Dispositional status, reflecting severity, was the best indicator of which delinquent males would have adult criminal records. A causal model is presented.

This study provides a comparison of similarities and differences with respect to ethnic identity between Anglo and Chicano adolescents from Texas. A path analysis model was used to test a theoretical assumption concerning proposed antecedents and consequences of self‐esteem. Research instruments included the Rosenberg Self Esteem Scale, the Semantic Differential (scales for Myself and My Ethnic Group) and the McGuire White Measure of Social Status. Results were consistent with the interpretation that there is a relationship between being Chicano and having lower self‐esteem, lower behavioral adjustment, and higher ethnic esteem. The prediction that ethnic esteem would mediate between ethnic group and self‐esteem was upheld. Variables such as ethnic group membership per se and sex appear as or more important to the prediction of behavioral level. Clinical implications include recognizing that Chicanos low in self‐esteem or behavioral adjustment should not automatically be considered unusual. The problems faced by this group are considered as having something in common with other groups of people who have more problems, lesser status, fewer resources, and fewer sources of available help.

We wish to express our deep appreciation to the government for its generous financial support and to the University of Minnesota and its Department of Psychology for making their facilities available to us.We also wish to acknowledge the many people whose assistance and participation were essential contributions to the study.

A sample of 2453 grade school children were followed through record sources into young adulthood. Data on peer status and social class were collected, and a subset was subsequently located in high school yearbooks. Those with mental health treatment during young adulthood were determined. Significant relationships were found between peer status and high school activity, and young adult adjustment, with low peer status children having two to three times greater risk for mental health treatment contact in young adulthood.