TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2020//
TI  - Does contact with the justice system deter or promote future delinquency? Results from a longitudinal study of British adolescent twins
JO  - Criminology
A1  - Motz, Ryan T.
A1  - Barnes, J. C.
A1  - Caspi, Avshalom
A1  - Arseneault, Louise
A1  - Cullen, Francis T.
A1  - Houts, Renate
A1  - Wertz, Jasmin
A1  - Moffitt, Terrie E.
SP  - 307
EP  - 335
VL  - 58
IS  - 2
N2  - What impact does formal punishment have on antisocial conduct--does it deter or promote it? The findings from a long line of research on the labeling tradition indicate formal punishments have the opposite-of-intended consequence of promoting future misbehavior. In another body of work, the results show support for deterrence-based hypotheses that punishment deters future misbehavior. So, which is it? We draw on a nationally representative sample of British adolescent twins from the Environmental Risk (E-Risk) Longitudinal Twin Study to perform a robust test of the deterrence versus labeling question. We leverage a powerful research design in which twins can serve as the counterfactual for their co-twin, thereby ruling out many sources of confounding that have likely impacted prior studies. The pattern of findings provides support for labeling theory, showing that contact with the justice system--through spending a night in jail/prison, being issued an anti-social behaviour order (ASBO), or having an official record--promotes delinquency. We conclude by discussing the impact these findings may have on criminologists' and practitioners' perspective on the role of the juvenile justice system in society.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 0011-1384
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/1745-9125.12236
ID  - ref1
ER  -