Crime and gender: intersections and patterns

Criminal Justice - Gender

CRIME and GENDER

Give and explain two reasons why hanging out with boys seems to increase criminal offending for both boys and girls.

Generally, males are much more likely than females to engage in delinquent and criminal behaviors than females; this is especially true in the case of violent crimes (Ogle, et al. 1995). Also, there seems to be is a direct relationship between peer relations and offending behaviors of all types, in both genders. Regardless of gender, adolescents who spend more unsupervised time with their peers are more likely to engage in delinquent behavior by virtue of the strength of their need for peer approval. Since males are more inclined to become involved in criminal offending behavior, adolescents whose peer group consists of (or includes) males are more inclined toward criminal conduct because male peers are more likely to lead by example and to reward offending behavior with peer approval (Agnew & Brezina 1997). Another possible explanation is that adolescents who are less tightly controlled by parents are more likely to offend. Since male adolescents are less tightly controlled by parents than females, adolescents who have the opportunity to spend more time with male peers are less tightly controlled by their parents than adolescents who spend less time with male peers. 2. According to Merton's strain theory, who should commit more crime males or females? What is true in reality?

According to Merton's original strain theory, the primary source of strain in modern society relates to financial success and social status (Agnew & Brezina 1997).