Citation

Mercer N, Keijsers L, Crocetti E, Branje SJT, Meeus W. J. Res. Adolesc. 2016; 26(4): 947-962.

Affiliation

Tilburg University.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2016, John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1111/jora.12246

PMID

28453206

Abstract

Research consistently identifies a group of adolescents who refrain from minor delinquency entirely. Known as abstainers, studying these adolescents is an underexplored approach to understanding adolescent minor delinquency. In this paper, we tested hypotheses regarding adolescent delinquency abstention derived from the developmental taxonomy model and social control theory in 497 adolescents (283 boys) aged 13-18 comparing three groups of adolescents: abstainers, experimenters, and a delinquent group. We found that the relation between adolescent abstention and personal characteristics (i.e., conscientiousness and anxiety) was (partially) mediated by the amount of time spent with peers. Furthermore, the level of best friend delinquency moderated the relation between time spent with peers and delinquency abstention.

RESULTS support aspects of both theoretical frameworks.

© 2016 The Authors. Journal of Research on Adolescence © 2016 Society for Research on Adolescence.

Language: en