NCJ Number
56251
Journal
STUDIA KRYMINOLOGICZNE KRYMINALISTYCZNE I PENITENCJARNE, T 6 Dated: (1977) Pages: 271-294
Date Published
1977
Length
24 pages
Annotation
VALUES OF PRISONERS WERE STUDIED TO DETERMINE A GENERAL PERSONALITY PROFILE.
Abstract
THE SUBJECTS CHOSEN FOR STUDY WERE 103 PRISONERS AGE 17 TO 20 YEARS. FIFTY-ONE STUDENTS OF PRIMARY TECHNICAL SCHOOL WHO WERE NEVER CONVICTED CONSTITUTED THE CONTROL GROUP. A TWO-PART QUESTIONNAIRE WAS USED. THE FIRST PART LISTED 14 GOALS IN LIFE. THE SUBJECTS WERE TO CHOOSE THOSE GOALS THEY DESIRED TO REACH BUT FELT WERE UNATTAINABLE, THOSE DESIRED AND ATTAINABLE, AND THOSE NOT DESIRED AT ALL. INTERESTS OF THE SUBJECTS REGARDLESS OF THE OBJECTIVE REALITY WERE TO BE DETERMINED. THE SECOND PART OF THE LISTED 19 CHARACTER QUALITIES. THE SUBJECTS WERE TO CHOOSE THE FIVE MOST DESIRED QUALITIES, SEVERAL QUALITIES THAT THEY FELT THEY ALREADY POSSESSED, AND FIVE QUALITIES NOT DESIRED. THE TWO PARTS OF THE COMPLETED QUESTIONNAIRE WERE COMPARED TO DETERMINE THE SUBJECTS' SELF-IMAGE AND TO FIND DOMINATING FACTORS IN THE SYSTEM OF VALUES. ANOTHER ASPECT WAS TO DETERMINE THE DEGREE TO WHICH THE SUBJECTS' DOMINANT GOALS AND DESIRES WERE REALISTIC. THE LACK OF FUNDAMENTAL DIFFERENCES BETWEEN PRISONERS AND THE STUDENTS WAS ASCERTAINED. JUVENILE DELINQUENTS AS WELL AS NONDELINQUENTS SHOWED SIMILAR TYPES OF INDIVIDUAL ORIENTATION, THOUGH NONDELINQUENTS SHOWED UNDERSTANDING FOR PROBLEMS OF WIDER SOCIAL RANGE. AS FAR AS PERSONAL MODELS WERE CONCERNED, JUVENILE DELINQUENTS ESPECIALLY VALUED MODELS WHO LIKED AMUSEMENT, WHEREAS NONDELINQUENTS LIKED MODELS WHO CARED FOR WORK AND THEIR OWN PERSONAL GOOD. JUVENILE DELINQUENTS WERE CHARACTERIZED BY LOWER SELF-ESTEEM AND SOME AGGRESSIVE BEHAVIOR. NINE TABLES ARE INCLUDED TO ILLUSTRATE THE BACKGROUND OF THE SUBJECTS AND THE RESULTS OF THE STUDY. (ELP)