Root of All Evil? An Exploratory Study of Money and Delinquent Involvement

• NCJ Number: 188970
• Journal: Justice Quarterly Volume: 18 Issue: 2 Dated: June 2001 Pages: 239-268
• Author(s): John Paul Wright; Francis T. Cullen; Robert S. Agnew; Timothy Brezina
• Date Published: June 2001
• Length: 30 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This study examined the effect of adolescents’ financial resources on involvement in juvenile delinquency and drug use and included both money earned from work and money received from parental allowances in the youths’ financial resources.

Abstract

The study arose from recognition that modern criminological theory makes contradictory predictions about the possible effects of money on problem behavior. Strain theory suggests that the possession of monetary resources facilitates goal achievement and therefore reduces the likelihood of offending. In contrast, an anomie perspective would regard possession of money as a prelude to greater drug use and delinquency. The participants were 436 high school seniors who took part in a cross-sectional study conducted in 8 high schools in northeastern Tennessee. Participants completed self-report surveys in classrooms during the first week of classes. The independent variables were financial resources and desire for money as measured on a three-item scale. The control variables included individual differences (low self-control and work-related cynicism), delinquent peer pressure, peer involvement, social bonds, employment-related strains, family structure, and demographics. The dependent variables included delinquent variables and use of alcohol, cigarettes, or marijuana or being drunk in a public place during the past year. Results tended to be consistent with anomie theory and revealed that money and its pursuit were positively associated with problem behavior. The effects of adolescents’ financial resources on misbehavior appeared to be primarily direct. The effects of materialistic values were far more limited. The analysis concluded that money is a core concern for many adolescents and seems to exert some harmful effects on their behavior. Figure, table, footnotes, appended descriptions of variables, and 57 references (Author abstract modified)