Self-Control and Crime Over the Life Course

Hay, Carter; Meldrum, Ryan C.

doi:10.4135/9781483397726

Cited by 94 publications

(94 citation statements)

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“…Taken together, the findings from this research have led scholars to a conclusion that has now garnered substantial consensus (see Hay & Meldrum, ; Pratt, ): Although self‐control is stable over time for most individuals, notable change occurs for a nontrivial minority of youth. These changes can involve either increasing or decreasing absolute shifts in self‐control that produce shifts in the rank ordering of individuals.…”

Section: Prior Theory and Research On Self‐control Stabilitymentioning

confidence: 77%

“…Such inflexibility creates an unnecessary and counterproductive division between self‐control theory and life‐course criminology, a division that would seem to depress research into the role self‐control may play in explaining within‐individual changes in crime over time as well as individual heterogeneity in such changes. Thus, we believe that revision of the stability thesis is warranted—theoretical models of self‐control should incorporate the compelling evidence that self‐control is dynamic (and heterogeneous) in its development over the life course (Forrest & Hay, ; Hay & Meldrum, ; Pratt, ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This could involve assessing stability separately across all six elements, but for broader theoretical and empirical reasons, it should begin by concentrating on two specific elements: risk‐seeking and impulsivity. These two elements fared reasonably well in the diagnostic studies just described, but the rationale for concentrating on them is primarily theoretical in nature—risk‐seeking and impulsivity play the central roles in Steinberg's () dual systems model of neurological development, an emerging line of biosocial theory relevant to the study of self‐control and adolescent development (Burt et al., ; Hay & Meldrum, ).…”

Section: Risk‐seeking Impulsivity and The Dual Systems Modelmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Development of impulsivity and risk‐seeking: Implications for the dimensionality and stability of self‐control*

et al. 2019

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In Gottfredson and Hirschi's self‐control theory, introduced in 1990, they contend that self‐control is a unidimensional construct that develops early in childhood and remains stable throughout the life span. According to findings reported in recent research, however, these arguments are now being challenged, with scholars pointing to ways in which self‐control may be multidimensional in nature and may change beyond the period of alleged stabilization. In this study, we draw on Steinberg's dual systems model, introduced in 2008, to consider this issue further. We examine that model's two key elements of low self‐control—risk‐seeking and impulsivity—to determine whether they are empirically distinguishable from one another and have differing developmental trajectories from childhood to early adulthood. We also consider the consequences of changes in risk‐seeking and impulsivity for within‐individual changes in crime. We examine these issues with data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 (NLSY79) for individuals from 10 to 30 years old. The results of our analyses show support for a multidimensional and dynamic conception of self‐control—from age 10 to age 30, risk‐seeking and impulsivity are empirically distinct and develop in divergent ways that are consistent with the dual systems model. Changes in risk‐seeking and impulsivity also affect changes in crime, but their effects vary with age and changes in the other element. We discuss these findings and their implications for self‐control and the development of life‐course criminology.

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Section: Prior Theory and Research On Self‐control Stabilitymentioning

confidence: 77%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Risk‐seeking Impulsivity and The Dual Systems Modelmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Development of impulsivity and risk‐seeking: Implications for the dimensionality and stability of self‐control*

et al. 2019

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“…We now understand that nearly all adolescents have deviant and non-deviant friends (Haynie 2002). However, the extent to which these friends transmit signals of normative or deviant behavior varies across the extent to which peers approve of substance use and deviance (Trucco et al 2011), the timing of puberty (Westling et al 2008), and an adolescent’s level of selfcontrol (Hay and Meldrum 2016). Collectively, much of the knowledge that researchers have gained on peers and crime has derived from Sutherland’s (1947) differential association theory, meaning the theory has had a tremendous impact on our historic and extant understanding of the importance of peers.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Developmental Perspective on Reentry: Understanding the Causes and Consequences of Family Conflict and Peer Delinquency during Adolescence and Emerging Adulthood

Mowen

Boman

2017

J Youth Adolescence

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Despite the uniqueness of an incarceration experience for adolescents, there remains a shortage of research on adolescents and emerging adults who have been recently released from detention centers and are returning home during the transitional time period of "reentry". Drawing from the developmental literature, the current study uses a diverse (54% Black, 20% White, 26% Other Race) longitudinal survey of 337 male adolescents living in the United States to examine the interrelationships among crime, substance use, family conflict, and peer delinquency. A series of cross-lagged dynamic panel data models using four waves of data demonstrate that while family conflict and peer delinquency relate to increased offending and substance use, conflict in the family is a major driving force behind both future family conflict and peer delinquency. Overall, findings suggest that family conflict is an overlooked, but absolutely critical, factor in explaining deviance and deviant peer associations alike for adolescents and emerging adults who have been recently incarcerated and released.

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“…The alleged faults are commonly linked to poor self-control. Hay and Meldrum (2016) state: BSelf-control is a practice in which individuals deliberately act upon themselves to alter their immediate urges, impulses, inclinations, or temptations . .…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Psychological Safety for Mental Health Practitioners: Suggestions from a Defense Lawyer

Woody

2015

Psychol. Inj. and Law

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Self-Control and Crime Over the Life Course

Cited by 94 publications

References 0 publications

Development of impulsivity and risk‐seeking: Implications for the dimensionality and stability of self‐control*

Development of impulsivity and risk‐seeking: Implications for the dimensionality and stability of self‐control*

A Developmental Perspective on Reentry: Understanding the Causes and Consequences of Family Conflict and Peer Delinquency during Adolescence and Emerging Adulthood

Psychological Safety for Mental Health Practitioners: Suggestions from a Defense Lawyer

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