Why Is Involvement in Unstructured Socializing Related to Adolescent Delinquency?*

Abstract

The relationship between unstructured socializing (peer-oriented activity without supervision) and adolescent delinquency is widely established and recognized, but less is known about why this relationship exists. The present study integrates the unstructured socializing perspective with insights from social learning theory and other theoretical perspectives on peer influence and empirically investigates four possible explanatory processes. The study applies time diary data to operationalize accurately the concept of unstructured socializing and survey data to capture mediating variables and selfreported delinquency (a general frequency measure of various offenses, as well as specified measures for violence, theft, and vandalism). Data were collected longitudinally with two waves of surveys and space-time budget interviews among 610 adolescents (11 to 20 years of age). A multilevel-path model was estimated to analyze within-individual changes over time. The findings indicate that three of the four proposed explanatory processes contribute to the explanation of the relationship between unstructured socializing and delinquency.Research on lifestyles, leisure, and routine activity patterns repeatedly has shown that adolescents' involvement in certain activities leads to higher risks of involvement in delinquency (Anderson, 2013;Felson and Boba, 2010;. Not many studies, however, have investigated the underlying processes in this relationship. The present study aims to compare potential explanatory processes empirically by focusing on one * Additional supporting information can be found in the listing for this article in the Wiley Online Library at http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/crim.2016.54.issue-2/issuetoc. The authors would like to thank Wayne Osgood, Gerben Bruinsma, Lieven Pauwels, the editors, and the anonymous reviewers for their valuable comments and suggestions; Per-Olof Wikström for sharing the questionnaire and the space-time budget interview developed for the Peterborough Adolescent and Young Adult Development Study (PADS+);

Racial Disparities in the Criminal Justice System: Prevalence, Causes, and a Search for Solutions

“…Perhaps children and youth targeted for school discipline were labeled “troublemakers,” and this label became a self‐fulfilling prophecy (Hirschfield, ). Youth who have been suspended and expelled were also more likely to spend time unsupervised (Kim et al., ), which increased the likelihood of engaging in criminal behavior (Hoeben & Weeman, ). Suspension and expulsion may also cause youth to deidentify with school and form bonds with others in similar situations, which may increase opportunities to engage in criminal behavior (Unnever & Gabbidon, ).…”

Peers and offender decision‐making

“…These two perspectives of peer influence are often viewed as competing. As a result, in much of the existing literature, scholars have treated the potential influence of peers as the outcome of either situational or normative processes, even though empirical work suggests that both contribute to delinquent behavior (Haynie & Osgood, ; Hoeben & Weerman, ; Megens & Weerman, ; Ragan, ; Thomas & McGloin, ; Warr & Stafford, ).…”

“…Throughout this discussion, we highlight how these three perspectives have served to advance our understanding of both peer influence and offender decision‐making. In the remainder of the article, we discuss how integrating insights from the decision‐making literature can help advance both normative (Akers, ; Sutherland, ) and situational theories of peer influence (Osgood, Wilson, O'Malley, Bachman, & Johnston, ; Warr, ) and, further, how such insights can be used to help integrate these mechanisms that are often viewed as competing (Haynie & Osgood, ; Hoeben & Weerman, ; Thomas & McGloin, ). Put simply, we argue that peers can affect perceptions and preferences through socialization in the long term as well as through situational factors in the short term.…”

Routine Activities and Delinquency: The Significance of Bonds to Society and Peer Context

“…On the other hand, it may mean that routine activities, including unstructured peer interaction, have fewer effects on the most severe forms of delinquency. Consistent with this interpretation, unstructured peer interaction was not related to either violence (Hoeben & Weerman, 2016) or assault (Müller, Eisner, & Ribeaud, 2013), types of deviance serious enough to result in arrest if detected by authorities, in two earlier longitudinal studies.…”