Citation

Leas L, Mellor D. Behav. Change 2000; 17(3): 155-166.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2000, Australian Behaviour Modification Association, Publisher Cambridge University Press)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

This study investigated the relative contributions of risk-taking behaviour (RTB), parental attachment, and depression to delinquency. Data were gathered from 108 university students and youth group members, aged between 17 and 23 years (M = 19 years). Each participant completed four self-report questionnaires: the Australian Self-report Delinquency Scale, the Adolescent Risk-taking Questionnaire, the Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment, and the Beck Depression Inventory. The three predictor variables were significantly related to each other, and risk-taking behaviour and depression uniquely predicted total delinquency. While parent attachment was not a significant predictor of delinquency, when the subscales of parent attachment were assessed individually, parental trust and communication inversely predicted delinquent behaviour. Although based on a nondeviant sample, the findings suggest that adolescents who display poor parent attachment, depression, or high risk-taking behaviour, singularly or in combination, are more prone to engage in delinquent behaviour. The results hold a number of potentially important implications for both further studies and the design and provision of intervention and preventative programs. (Abstract Adapted from Source: Behaviour Change, 2000. Copyright © 2000 by the Australian Academic Press)

Juvenile Delinquency
Juvenile Offender
Juvenile Depression
Juvenile Behavior
Risk Taking Behavior
Parent Child Attachment
Parent Child Relations
Family Attachment
Family Relations
Depression Effects
Behavior Effects
Delinquency Causes
Australia
Foreign Countries
02-02