The effects of self-control, gang membership, and parental attachment/identification on police contacts among Latino and African American youths

Int J Offender Ther Comp Criminol. 2012 Apr;56(2):218-38. doi: 10.1177/0306624X10394116. Epub 2010 Dec 27.

Abstract

This study assessed the correlates of self-control and police contact in a sample of Chicago public high school students. The investigation examined the effects of parental attachment/identification, family structure, and peer association on self-control and the effects of parental attachment/identification, family structure, peer association, and self-control on police contact. Differences between African American and Latino youth on the predictors of the two dependent measures were tested in separate regression models. Weak parental attachment/identification and gang affiliation (peer association) predicted low self-control among all students. Among African American youth, only weak maternal attachment/identification predicted low self-control; both weak maternal attachment/identification and gang affiliation predicted low self-control among Latino youth. Gang affiliation predicted police stops (delinquency) among African Americans but not among Latinos. However, both African American and Latino students with lower self-control were more likely to be stopped by the police than those with higher self-control.

Publication types

  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Black People*
  • Chicago
  • Female
  • Hispanic or Latino*
  • Humans
  • Juvenile Delinquency / psychology
  • Juvenile Delinquency / statistics & numerical data
  • Male
  • Parent-Child Relations*
  • Peer Group*
  • Police*
  • Self Concept*
  • Surveys and Questionnaires
  • Young Adult