Social Concern and Delinquency: An Empirical Assessment of a Novel Theory

Using the Pathways to Desistance data, this study provides a test of Agnew’s social concern theory. Social concern is hypothesized to reduce criminality through four components: care about the welfare of others, desire for close ties, moral intuitions, and desire to conform. The analyses provide support for the theory’s core contentions. Care about others and moral intuitions are negatively associated with delinquency. Further, social concern partly mediates the effects of social learning, strain, social bond, self-control, and social support on delinquency. Findings indicate that social concern theory is a promising approach that merits continued theoretical refinement and empirical assessment.     

A Cross-Cultural Test of Social Structure and Social Learning: Alcohol Use among South Korean Adolescents

The main purpose of this study is to test the validity and cross-cultural generalizability of Akers’ Social Structure and Social Learning (SSSL) model of crime and deviance. The test is done with data on substance use behavior among adolescents in South Korea utilizing a sample of 1,021 high school students. The data are taken from (1) a self-report survey of 1,021 high school students in Busan, South Korea and (2) district (Gu) level census reports of Busan. We consider this a test of the full SSSL model because we have at least one measure of all of the four main explanatory concepts found in social learning theory (differential association, definition, differential reinforcement, and imitation) and of all four of the social structural components of SSSL (differential social organization, differential location in the social structure, theoretically defined structural causes of crime, and differential social location in groups). The principal hypothesis is that the effects of the measures of social structure on adolescent deviance (substance use) will be substantially mediated by the measures of the social learning variables. To test this hypothesis multi-level data are analyzed in several Hierarchal Linear Models. The social learning variables are found to substantially mediate the effects of social structural components on adolescents’ alcohol use. Therefore, the study provides additional evidence supportive of SSSL and evidence that it applies not only in the United States but also is generalizable to a non-Western society. The contributions, limitations, and implications of the study for future research are presented.     

The Causes and Courses of Nonviolent and Violent Delinquency among South Korean Adolescents

ABSTRACT

This study combines and compares data from the Korean Youth Panel Survey and the Korean Children and Youth Panel Survey to examine the effects parenting, peers, school, social structure, and personality exert on nonviolent and violent delinquency among 5,462 male and 5,103 female adolescents in South Korea. Overall, parental effects were found to be more important than peer effects, but their influence diminishes relative to that of peer effects with age. The semiparametric group-based modeling approach identifies distinct groups of stable nondelinquents, stable moderates, moderate escalators, de-escalators, and desistors (but not chronic offenders). Lastly, this study does not provide support for a public discourse that infers juvenile delinquency has increased in frequency and severity.     

Heroin Use among Adolescents: A Multi-Theoretical Examination

Criminological examination of substance use is common in the extant literature; however, little research has examined heroin use among adolescents. Recent trends in drug use indicate a rise of heroin among adolescents indicating a need to provide theoretical explanations of this phenomenon. This study examines the efficacy of social learning theory and social bond theory to explain heroin use. The study uses a nationally representative sample of adolescents from the Monitoring the Future Survey (N = 2,465). The results support the central arguments from social structure social learning theory. First, the results show that social structure components have links with heroin use. Second, the results show that social learning theory mediates the effect of social structure measures on heroin use. The results are discussed.     

Developmental Process of Internet Gaming Disorder among South Korean Adolescents: Effects of Family Environment and Recreation Experience

Despite growing public concern over Internet game use disorder, the popularity of Internet gaming has rapidly increased among adolescents. Since Internet gaming disorder has largely been investigated through the lens of serious psychiatric syndromes, most previous studies employed diverse psychopathological concepts like depression and anxiety. Unlike those studies, this study provides useful opportunities to better understand how adolescents’ Internet gaming disorder is conceptually linked with their family environment and recreation experience. Using a large sample of South Korean high school students (N?=?2215), this study found that adolescents’ levels of Internet gaming disorder were positively associated with their perception of constraints to recreation participation. The structural equation model additionally indicated that respondents’ problematic engagement in the online activity was negatively related to the cohesive and adaptable characteristics of family system. According to the effect decomposition results, the concept of leisure constraints served as more important factor than family functioning and leisure satisfaction in determining respondents’ degrees of problematic involvement in Internet gaming. This study also revealed that the exogenous variable of family functioning was significantly related to leisure constraints and leisure satisfaction with an opposite path coefficient sign. Based on study findings derived from the conceptual framework, several policy implications are discussed to decrease adolescents’ excessive immersion in Internet games.     

Negative Affectivity and Drinking in Adolescents: An Examination of Moderators Predicted by Affect Regulation Theory

This investigation examined potential moderators of the longitudinal relation between negative affectivity and drinking. Specifically tested was the degree to which alcohol expectancies and coping styles moderate the relation between negative affectivity in early adolescence and drinking in middle and late adolescence. Four hundred ninety nine early adolescents completed inventories of negative affectivity, coping style, and tension reduction expectancies, and were followed up with inventories of drinking in middle and late adolescence. Constructive coping moderated the relation between negative affectivity and drinking in middle adolescence, such that only those with poor coping skills exhibited this positive relation. Although early negative affectivity was directly related to drinking in late adolescence, no interactions between negative affectivity and expectancies or coping were detected for drinking at that age. This absence of consistent moderating effects indicates significant limitations in the ability of the traditionally-conceived affect regulation model to reliably predict adolescent drinking. This research was conducted at the Center for Education and Drug Abuse Research (CEDAR) which is located in the School of Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University of Pittsburgh and is supported by grant P50-DA-05605 from the National Institute on Drug Abuse.     

Software Piracy among Korean Adolescents: Lessons from Panel Data

The purpose of this study was to examine the determinants of adolescents’ software piracy over time and discover gender differences based on Self-Control and Problem Behavior theories. Using the Korean Youth Panel Survey data, both random and fixed effects models were estimated although this study focused on within effects. Findings showed that increases in problematic off-line behavior, psychological health problems, and time spent on computers, as well as decrease in self-control, increased the likelihood of computer piracy among Korean adolescents. Additional analyses identified gender differences. Implications for policy and future research as well as limitations are discussed.     

A Research Note on Adolescent Steroid Use: An Examination of Social Learning Theory and Self-Control Theory

This study compared the criminological theories social learning theory and low self-control to determine their effects on adolescent steroid use. The data for this study came from the 12th-grade survey of the 2009 Monitoring the Future Project Form 6 that is a nationally representative sample. We found that social learning theory and the sex (i.e., male) of the adolescent are all significant predictors of adolescent steroid use.     

An Empirical Examination of a Model of Social Climate in Elementary Schools

Although Gerbner and Gross (1976) maintained that television viewing cultivates impressions of the real world that are distorted in the direction of the TV version of reality, several studies (e.g., Doob & Macdonald, 1979) have found no relationship between viewing and perceptions of crime in the respondent's neighborhood. It is possible, however, that TV viewing may not affect perceptions of crime in the respondent's immediate environment but may affect perceptions of crime in more distant settings. In two separate studies, we examined the effects of TV viewing on perceptions of crime in the immediate neighborhood and on perceptions of crime in more distant, urban settings. Study 1, based on 372 nationwide telephone interviews, found that the total amount of TV viewed is related to fear of distant urban setting (i.e., New York City) but not to fear of respondent's own city or to fear of respondent's immediate neighborhood. Study 2, based on a survey of 192 undergraduates, found that the total amount of TV viewed is related to fear of distant urban setting (i.e., NYC) and to fear of less distant urban setting (i.e., downtown Chicago) but not to fear of respondent's immediate neighborhood. The implications of these studies for clearing up past confusions in the cultivation hypothesis literature are discussed.     

Neutralizing Music Piracy: An Empirical Examination

The current study sought to test the viability of employing Sykes and Matza's (1957 Sykes , G. and D. Matza . 1957 . “Techniques of Neutralization: A Theory of Delinquency.” American Sociological Review 22 : 664 – 670 .[Crossref], [Web of Science ®] , [Google Scholar]) techniques of neutralization as a framework for understanding online music piracy. Using data from a sample of 2,032 undergraduates from a large Midwestern university, the relevance of neutralization theory is tested via multinomial logistic regression while controlling for other theoretical predictors and demographic variables. The findings indicated that greater acceptance of the techniques associated with denial of responsibility, denial of injury, denial of victim, and appeal to higher loyalties significantly predicted moderate levels of piracy participation. Furthermore, the effect of appeals to higher loyalty on piracy was found to be conditioned by the respondent's approval of the behavior. Overall, results suggested that university settings may unwittingly facilitate a climate for online piracy whereby students place a higher value on group norms rather than legal norms and do not consider the harms associated with the behavior.     

儿童青少年自尊发展理论建构与实证研究

自尊是包含能力和价值的重要心理资源,是个体心理健康的核心。多年来,我们围绕自尊开展了一系列理论建构及其相关的实证研究。其中,理论建构包括对自尊内涵和本质的探寻、"倒立的金字塔"自尊结构模型的建构。同时,运用多种方法对个体自尊的发展进行了实证研究,包括婴幼儿早期自尊的观察研究、小学生自尊发展与学校适应的关系研究、青少年自尊发展特点横向和纵向比较、特殊群体自尊与心理健康的关系研究。最后,运用实验方法分析了诱发失败情境下自尊对不良情绪的缓冲作用,不同自尊类型被试的记忆偏向和情感反应。这些研究为丰富国内自尊领域的研究成果做出了贡献。     

Subculture Theory: An Historical and Contemporary Assessment of the Concept for Understanding Deviance

Subcultures attract attention in culture, society, and the media because they have been theorized as not merely distinct from, but also in opposition to, the dominant culture. In the United States and the United Kingdom the concept of subculture has been a major explanatory tool for sociology and criminology to understand deviant behavior. For nearly a hundred years the concept has been at the center of academic struggle for superiority between rival paradigmatic approaches, which have employed different theoretical explanations. In this article I critically assess the origins and politics of the way the concept of subculture has been applied primarily to youth cultures in terms of the relationship between agency and constraint.     

The Impact of Poor Performers on Team Outcomes: An Empirical Examination of Attribution Theory*

We test assertions that attribution theory (AT) can explain the responses of peers to the characteristics of a poor performing team member. Study 1 assessed the processes used to interpret the behavior of a poor performer and found that behavioral manifestations of cognitive ability (g) and Conscientiousness were associated with causal attributions (locus, controllability, and stability), emotional and cognitive reactions, and behavioral intentions to help or punish a fellow team member. Building on Study 1, Study 2 focused on team level responses to the lowest performer. It assessed the impact of g/Conscientiousness of a poorly performing team member on involving others, communication, feedback, and citizenship behaviors of team members at the team level. Both studies converged in finding that individual team members' intentions to help or punish were related to poor performer traits.     

Medical Students' Motivations to Volunteer: An Examination of the Nature of Gender Differences

A sample of medical students was surveyed using the Volunteer Functions Inventory, an instrument that assesses the importance of 6 possible motives to volunteer that range from altruistic and humanitarian concern for others to more self-interested, career-related motives. Researchers in the past have described mean differences and rank differences for gender. Profile analysis was conducted to assess the relative importance of each motive by gender. Women rated all motives higher than did men. The relative ranking of the importance of the motives was similar for both genders. Contrary to previous studies, women rated instrumental motives at least as high as did men. Both genders rated altruistic motives highly. The results of this study may be used to inform a training curriculum or advertising campaign aimed at increasing volunteer efforts.     

From Social to Political Identity: A Critical Examination of Social Identity Theory

Interest in the concept of identity has grown exponentially within both the humanities and social sciences, but the discussion of identity has had less impact than might be expected on the quantitative study of political behavior in general and on political psychology more specifically. One of the approaches that holds the most promise for political psychologists is social identity theory, as reflected in the thinking of Henri Tajfel, John Turner, and colleagues. Although the theory addresses the kinds of problems of interest to political psychologists, it has had limited impact on political psychology because of social identity theorists' disinclination to examine the sources of social identity in a real world complicated by history and culture. In this review, four key issues are examined that hinder the successful application of social identity theory to political phenomena. These key issues are the existence of identity choice, the subjective meaning of identities, gradations in identity strength, and the considerable stability of many social and political identities.     

Techniques of Neutralization Theory and Positive Deviance

High achievers constitute a unique case in that they are simultaneously positive deviants—often to parents and teachers—and stigmatized as rate-busters—often to peers. Thus, a question is raised: Are theories that have been used to explain negative behaviors, such as the techniques of neutralization theory, also pertinent to positive behaviors? A group of high-achieving students were interviewed and it was found that each of the five techniques of neutralization was in fact advanced as a way of coping with the stigma, or the rate-busting portion, of their status.     

Tobacco Use Trends among Adolescents and Adults in South Africa

The purpose of this review is to synthesize the national prevalence data from eight surveys on tobacco use in South Africa over the past 13 years. Results from the national studies indicate that tobacco use among adults is on the decline in South Africa. The same applies to daily smoking and daily smokeless tobacco use among adolescents. However, onset of tobacco use and the prevalence of current smoking among adolescents seem not to have changed over the years. While exposure to tobacco smoke outside the home decreased from 56.5% in 1999 to 36.2% in 2002 among adolescents, exposure to tobacco smoke inside the home increased from 41.7% in 1999 to 73.3% in 2002. This change may be attributed to the introduction of the tobacco control act that from 2000 banned smoking in public places. The decline of overall daily smoking in South Africa may be attributed to the tobacco control strategy based on 1) rapidly increasing excise taxes on tobacco, and (2) comprehensive legislation, of which the most important features are banning all tobacco advertising and sponsorship, and prohibition of smoking in public and work places.     

Religiosity and Deviance: An Examination of the Moral Community and Antiasceticism Hypotheses Among U.S. Adults

Several hypotheses regarding the relationship between religiosity and deviance are examined using data from the geocoded General Social Survey. An inverse relationship between religiosity and several forms of deviance was documented; however the moral community hypothesis, which would predict that the interaction between group‐level religiosity and individual‐level religiosity would be inversely related to deviance, was not supported for any of the forms of deviant behavior examined. Additionally, the antiasceticism hypothesis, which argues that religiosity is more effective at deterring minor rather than serious forms of deviance, is only partially supported by the results of the analysis. The theoretical implications of this line of research, as well as suggestions for future avenues of research, are also discussed.