Going Along to Get Along? Interpersonal Processes and Girls' Delinquency

Abstract

Although social development research indicates that affiliation with delinquent peers predicts adolescent delinquent behavior, less is known about how peer relationships may impact girls' delinquent behavior differently than boys' behavior. To address this gap, this study examines adjudicated girls' perceptions of how their peer relationships impacted their decisions to engage in delinquency. Through in-depth, semi-structured interviews, a sample of eight adjudicated girls shared their perceptions of how same-gender friendships, opposite-gender non-romantic friendships, and opposite-gender romantic relationships influenced their choices to enact delinquent behavior. The study findings offer important implications for designing future gender-specific programming to prevent and/or reduce girls' delinquency.

Adolescent Female Offenders’ Subjective Experiences of How Peers Influence Norm-Breaking Behavior

“…According to these theories, delinquent behavior is learned in three major ways: through exposure to criminal models whose behavior is imitated, through reinforcement of delinquency, and through teaching of beliefs that promote delinquency. Empirical findings support the connection between peers' delinquency and the youths own delinquent behavior, where deviant peers both expose youths to criminal activities as well as encourage such behavior (Brauer and De Coster, 2015;Farrington, Ttofi & Coid, 2009;Haynie, 2002;Warr, 2002;Wike, Miller, Winn, & Taylor, 2013;Worthen, 2012). Meta analyses of the predictors of juvenile delinquency have found that deviant peers are a major risk factor for adolescents (Wong, Slotboom, & Bijleveld, 2010), and a deviant peer group has been shown to be one of the strongest predictors of female delinquency (Hubbard & Pratt, 2002), even when parents, school and other interpersonal factors are controlled for (Pleydon & Schner, 2001).…”

“…The females in the study also expressed a strong sense of personal agency and efficacy in making their own decisions, mostly denying being influenced by peers and partners to engage in delinquent acts. However, in depth analyses of the material revealed that the girls did in fact describe instances where they were influenced (Wike et al, 2013). Another qualitative study found that the gender of peers, from the young females' perspective, can have different influence on their delinquency (Solomon, 2006).…”

“…The majority of research concerning delinquency have for the most part used a quantitative approach, even if more scholars are beginning to adapt qualitative approaches to better understand female delinquency (Garcia & Lane, 2013;Herrman & Silverstein, 2012;Miller, 2001;Pugh-Lilly, Neville, & Poulin, 2001). For example, Wike et al, (2013) interviewed eight court-involved adolescent female who were adjudicated but not incarcerated in the juvenile court system in the United States. They found that female offenders describe same-gender friendships as a conduit for their minor delinquent activity, and that these behaviors serve a recreational purpose, such as to relieve boredom or provide excitement.…”

“I’m Actually a Female Empowerer”: Student Perspectives on a Critical Pedagogical Approach to Re/Engage At-Risk Females in School

“…Although girls who disengage or display deviant behavior may not consider that their decision making may have been influenced by their peers, the manifestation of such behavior can be considered as protective at times (Wike et al, 2013). Disengagement from school among females tends to be passive as opposed to acted out (Symonds et al, 2014).…”

“…Disengagement from school among females tends to be passive as opposed to acted out (Symonds et al, 2014). Indeed, it has been argued that interventions which utilize the strength of close friendships and acknowledge the positive aspects of such deviant behavior may generate successful engagement (Wike et al, 2013). This has particular implications for female students within the Irish context where 43% of students identified as at-risk or marginalized are female (Smyth et al, 2015).…”