Broken Homes and Criminality: The Impact of Family Disruption on Children's Delinquent Behavior
Open Access
Author:
Conner, Ashley Noel
Area of Honors:
Crime, Law, and Justice
Degree:
Bachelor of Science
Document Type:
Thesis
Thesis Supervisors:
Derek Allen Kreager, Thesis Supervisor Dr. Jeffery Todd Ulmer, Thesis Honors Advisor
Keywords:
Juvenile delinquency family disruption strain theory informal social control
Abstract:
Parental divorce, separation, and death are all dramatic events that can change the life of a child. This research examines the impact of such family disruption on changes in the delinquent behavior of juveniles. Previously collected data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Adolescent Health (Add Health) were used to test hypotheses derived from informal social control and strain theories of crime. Waves One and Two of the Add Health dataset were used to record changes in juvenile behavior, juvenile depression, parental monitoring, and closeness to parents. Juveniles who transitioned from a two-parent biological family to a single-parent biological family experience a slight increase in depression, but no significant increase in delinquency. Children who transitioned from a two-parent biological family to a two-parent alternative family experienced a decrease in parental monitoring and an increase in delinquency. The coefficients for depression and parental closeness were significant and in the expected directions. Further comparison by biological sex showed that depression is a significant and positive influence on delinquency for girls, while parental closeness is a significant and negative influence for boys.
