NCJ Number
87721
Date Published
1981
Length
29 pages
Annotation
This study indicates that girls are involved less often than boys in most delinquent behaviors, with their delinquencies being less serious, and female delinquencies have no special character.
Abstract
In the spring of 1980, a survey was conducted in the public and parochial high schools of four communities in one midwestern county. A total of 1,735 tenth graders, males and females representatively sampled from each of the nine schools, completed a self-administered questionnaire. The questionnaire contained questions about self-reported behavior; norms; self-concept; relationships with parents, school, and peers; future aspirations and expectations; and a variety of attitudes. Although female delinquencies are less frequent and less serious than boys, the typological and multivariate analyses indicate that the relationships between bond variables and delinquency are similar for both sexes, suggesting that factors bearing upon delinquent behavior are similar for girls and boys. Differences in the relative incidence of male and female delinquency appear to have lessened in the past decade, especially in those behaviors considered 'subcultural.' There is an adolescent subculture characterized by involvement in minor delinquencies, such as alcohol and marijuana use, truancy, sexual behavior, and petty theft. Nearly all adolescents, male and female, report some involvement in one or more of these behaviors. For both sexes, there is a normative system which encourages such behavior and social a system of frequent peer activities. Tabular and graphic data and 26 references are provided. (Author summary modified)