The current study examines whether the link between low self-control and perceptions of procedural justice among urban-born youth is contingent on acts of officer intrusiveness. Data come from the Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study and are restricted to youth reporting lifetime police stops at Year 15 (N = 918). Findings reveal that the association between low self-control and diminished perceptions of procedural justice is significantly moderated by officer intrusiveness. To be precise, low self-control became more relevant in diminished perceptions of procedural justice as officer intrusiveness decreased. The findings carry implications for police-citizen interactions, including the training of police officers in developmental science and how low self-control may shape youth perceptions of police encounters.
AalsmaM. C.SchwartzK.TuW. (2018). Improving police officer and justice personnel attitudes and de-escalation skills: A pilot study of policing the teen brain. Journal of Offender Rehabilitation, 57(7), 415–430.
2.
AlangS.McAlpineD.McClainM. (2021). Police encounters as stressors: Associations with depression and anxiety across race. Socius, 7, pp. 1–13.
3.
AntrobusE.ThompsonI.ArielB. (2019). Procedural justice training for police recruits: Results of a randomized controlled trial. Journal of Experimental Criminology, 15(1), 29–53.
4.
AugustynM. B. (2016). Updating perceptions of (In)justice. Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency, 53(2), 255–286.
5.
AugustynM. B.RayJ. V. (2016). Psychopathy and perceptions of procedural justice. Criminal Justice Journal, 46, 170–183.
6.
AugustynM. B.WardJ. T. (2015). Exploring the sanction–crime relationship through a lens of procedural justice. Criminal Justice Journal, 43(6), 470–479.
7.
BandesS. (1999). Patterns of injustice: Police brutality in the courts. Buffalo Law Review, 47, 1275.
8.
BaronS. W. (2003). Self-control, social consequences, and criminal behavior: Street youth and the general theory of crime. Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency, 40, 403–425.
9.
BeaverK. M.DeLisiM.MearsD. P.StewartE. (2009). Low self-control and contact with the criminal justice system in a nationally representative sample of males. Justice Quarterly, 26, 695–715.
10.
BosticJ. Q.ThurauL.PotterM.DruryS. S. (2014). Policing the teen brain. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 53(2), 127–129.
11.
BottomsA.TankebeJ. (2012). Beyond procedural justice: A dialogic approach to legitimacy in criminal justice. The Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology, 102(1), 119–170.
12.
BoutwellB. B.BeaverK. M. (2010). The intergenerational transmission of low self-control. Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency, 47(2), 174–209.
13.
BrownW.JenningsW. G. (2014). A replication and an honor-based extension of Hirschi’s reconceptualization of self-control theory and crime and analogous behaviors. Deviant Behavior, 35(4), 297–310.
14.
CloggC. C.PetkovaE.HaritouA. (1995). Statistical methods for comparing regression coefficients between models. American Journal of Sociology, 100(5), 1261–1293.
15.
DeLisiM.BergM. T. (2006). Exploring theoretical linkages between self-control theory and criminal justice system processing. Criminal Justice Journal, 34, 153–163.
16.
DeLisiM.VaughnM. G. (2014). Foundation for a temperament-based theory of antisocial behavior and criminal justice system involvement. Criminal Justice Journal, 42(1), 10–25.
17.
DickmanS. J. (1990). Functional and dysfunctional impulsivity: Personality and cognitive correlates. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 58(1), 95–102.
18.
DohertyE. E.BersaniB. E. (2020). What protects those at high risk from criminal justice contact despite the odds? A negative case analysis. The British Journal of Criminology, 60(6), 1627–1647.
19.
EngelR. S.SobolJ. J.WordenR. E. (2000). Further exploration of the demeanor hypothesis: The interaction effects of suspects’ characteristics and demeanor on police behavior. Justice Quarterly, 17, 235–258.
20.
FineA. D.DonleyS.CavanaghC.CauffmanE. (2020). Youth perceptions of law enforcement and worry about crime from 1976 to 2016. Criminal Justice and Behavior, 47(5), 564–581.
21.
FlexonJ. L.GreenleafR. G.LurigioA. J. (2012). The effects of self-control, gang membership, and parental attachment/identification on police contacts among Latino and African American Youths. International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, 56, 218–238.
22.
FordJ. D. (2011). Assessing child and adolescent complex traumatic stress reactions. Journal of Child & Adolescent Trauma, 4(3), 217–232.
23.
GauJ. M.CorsaroN.StewartE. A.BrunsonR. K. (2012). Examining macro-level impacts on procedural justice and police legitimacy. Criminal Justice Journal, 40(4), 333–343.
24.
GellerA.FaganJ. (2019). Police contact and the legal socialization of urban teens. RSF The Russell Sage Foundation Journal of the Social Sciences, 5(1), 26–49.
25.
GellerA.FaganJ.TylerT.LinkB. G. (2014). Aggressive policing and the mental health of young urban men. American Journal of Public Health, 104, 2321–2327.
26.
GottfredsonM. R.HirschiT. (1990). A general theory of crime. Stanford University Press.
27.
GruenewaldJ.PridemoreW. A. (2012). A comparison of ideologically-motivated homicides from the new extremist crime database and homicides from the supplementary homicide reports using multiple imputation by chained equations to handle missing values. Journal of Quantitative Criminology, 28(1), 141–162.
28.
HarrisJ. W.JonesM. S. (2020). Shaping youths’ perceptions and attitudes toward the police: Differences in direct and vicarious encounters with police. Criminal Justice Journal, 67, 101674.
29.
HeltonJ. J.JacksonD. B.BoutwellB. B.VaughnM. G. (2018). Household food insecurity and parent-to-child aggression. Child Maltreatment, 24(2), 213–221.
30.
HirschiT. (2004). Self-Control and crime. In BaumeisterR. F.VohsK. D.AartsH. E.AldaoA. M.BarkleyR. A. (Eds.), Handbook of self-regulation. Research, theory, and applications (pp. 537–552). CRC Press.
31.
HoferM. S.WomackS. R.WilsonM. N. (2020). An examination of the influence of procedurally just strategies on legal cynicism among urban youth experiencing police contact. Journal of Community Psychology, 48(1), 104–123.
32.
HoltfreterK.BeaverK. M.ReisigM. D.PrattT. C. (2010). Low self-control and fraud offending. Journal of Financial Crime, 17, 295–307.
33.
HurstY. G.FrankJ. (2000). How kids view cops the nature of juvenile attitudes toward the police. Criminal Justice Journal, 28(3), 189–202.
34.
JacksonD. B.FahmyC.VaughnM. G.TestaA. (2019). Police stops among at-risk youth: Repercussions for mental health. Journal of Adolescent Health, 65(5), 627–632.
35.
JacksonD. B.TestaA.VaughnM. G. (2020a). Low self-control and the adolescent police stop: Intrusiveness, emotional response, and psychological well-being. Criminal Justice Journal, 66, 101635.
36.
JacksonD. B.TestaA.VaughnM. G. (2020b). Low self-control and legal cynicism among at-risk youth: An investigation into direct and vicarious police contact. Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency, 57(6), 741–783.
37.
JacksonD. B.TurneyK. (2021). Sleep problems among mothers of youth stopped by the police. Journal of Urban Health, 98(2), 163–171.
38.
JacksonJ.BradfordB.HoughM.MyhillA.QuintonP.TylerT. R. (2012). Why do people comply with the law? Legitimacy and the influence of legal institutions. The British Journal of Criminology, 52(6), 1051–1071.
39.
JacobsenW. C. (2019). The intergenerational stability of punishment: Paternal incarceration and suspension or expulsion in elementary school. Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency, 56(5), 651–693.
40.
JonesM. S.PierceH.ChappleC. L. (2021). Early adverse childhood experiences and self-control development among youth in fragile families. Youth & Society, 54(5), 806–832. https://doi.org/10.1177/0044118X21996378
41.
JonesS.LynamD. R.PiqueroA. R. (2015). Substance use, personality, and inhibitors: Testing Hirschi’s predictions about the reconceptualization of self-control. Crime and Delinquency, 61(4), 538–558.
42.
JonesS.QuisenberryN. (2004). The general theory of crime: How general is it?Deviant Behavior, 25, 401–426.
43.
KarlsonK. B.HolmA.BreenR. (2012). Comparing regression coefficients between same-sample nested models using logit and probit: A new method. Sociological Methodology, 42(1), 286–313.
44.
KesslerR. C.AndrewsG.MroczekD.UstunB.WittchenH. U. (1998). The World Health Organization composite international diagnostic interview short-form (CIDI-SF). International Journal of Methods in Psychiatric Research, 7(4), 171–185.
45.
KlingerD. A. (1994). Demeanor Or crime? Why “Hostile” citizens are more likely to be arrested. Criminology, 32, 475–493.
46.
LittleR. J.RubinD. B. (2002). Statistical analysis with missing data. John Wiley & Sons.
47.
McCluskeyJ. D.ReisigM. (2017). Explaining procedural justice during police-suspect encounters: A systematic social observation study. Policing: An International Journal, 40(3), 574–586.
48.
McFarlandM. J.GellerA.McFarlandC. (2019). Police contact and health among urban adolescents: The role of perceived injustice. Social Science & Medicine, 238, 112487.
49.
McLeanK.WolfeS. E.PrattT. C. (2019). Legitimacy and the life course: AN age-graded examination of changes in legitimacy attitudes over time. Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency, 56, 42–83.
50.
MeehanK. B.De PanfilisC.CainN. M.ClarkinJ. F. (2013). Effortful control and externalizing problems in young adults. Personality and Individual Differences, 55(5), 553–558.
51.
MeldrumR. C.Campion YoungB.SoorS.HayC.CoppJ. E.TraceM.Smith-DardenJ. P.KernsmithP. D. (2020). Are adverse childhood experiences associated with deficits in self-control? A test among two independent samples of youth. Criminal Justice and Behavior, 47(2), 166–186.
52.
MohlerM.CampbellC.HendersonK.RenauerB. (2021). Policing in an era of sousveillance: A randomised controlled trial examining the influence of video footage on perceptions of legitimacy. Policing & Society, 32(1), 52–70. https://doi.org/10.1080/10439463.2021.1878169.
53.
NelsonJ. A.PerryN. B. (2015). Emotional reactivity, self-control, and children’s hostile attributions over middle childhood. Cognition & Emotion, 29, 592–603.
54.
PaternosterR.BrameR. (1998). The structural similarity of processes generating criminal and analogous behaviors. Criminology, 36, 633–670.
55.
PaternosterR.BrameR.MazerolleP.PiqueroA. (1998). Using the correct statistical test for the equality of regression coefficients. Criminology, 36(4), 859–866.
56.
PiliavinI.BriarS. (1964). Police encounters with juveniles. American Journal of Sociology, 70, 206–214.
57.
PiqueroA. R.BouffardJ. A. (2007). Something old, something new: A preliminary investigation of Hirschi’s redefined self-control. Justice Quarterly, 24(1), 1–27.
58.
PiqueroA. R.Gomez-smithZ.LangtonL. (2004). Discerning unfairness where others may not: Low self-control and unfair sanction perceptions. Criminology, 42(3), 699–734.
59.
PiqueroA. R.JenningsW. G.FarringtonD. P.DiamondB.GonzalezJ. M. R. (2016). A meta-analysis update on the effectiveness of early self-control improvement programs to improve self-control and reduce delinquency. Journal of Experimental Criminology, 12(2), 249–264.
60.
PrattT. C.CullenF. T. (2000). The empirical status of Gottfredson and Hirschi’s general theory of crime: A meta-analysis. Criminology, 38(3), 931–964.
61.
ReisigM. D.WolfeS. E.HoltfreterK. (2011). Legal cynicism, legitimacy, and criminal offending: The nonconfounding effect of low self-control. Criminal Justice and Behavior, 38, 1265–1279.
62.
SahinN.BragaA. A.ApelR.BrunsonR. K. (2017). The impact of procedurally-just policing on citizen perceptions of police during traffic stops: The Adana randomized controlled trial. Journal of Quantitative Criminology, 33(4), 701–726.
63.
SargeantE.MurphyK.CherneyA. (2014). Ethnicity, trust and cooperation with police: Testing the dominance of the process-based model. European Journal of Criminology, 11(4), 500–524.
64.
SchwartzK.PateM. R.TuW.AalsmaM. C. (2017). Improving police officer knowledge of de-escalation skills: A pilot study of policing the teen brain. Journal of Adolescent Health, 60(2), S15–S16.
65.
StataCorp. (2017). Stata statistical software: Release 15. StataCorp LLC.
66.
SunshineJ.TylerT. R. (2003). The role of procedural justice and legitimacy in shaping public support for policing. Law & Society Review, 37(3), 513–548.
67.
SwattM. L. (2002). Demeanor and arrest revisited: Reconsidering the direct effect of demeanor. Journal of Crime and Justice, 25, 23–39.
68.
TankebeJ. (2009). Public cooperation with the police in Ghana: Does procedural fairness matter?Criminology, 47(4), 1265–1293.
69.
TankebeJ. (2013). Viewing things differently: The dimensions of public perceptions of police legitimacy. Criminology, 51(1), 103–135.
70.
ThibautJ.WalkerL.LaTourS.HouldenP. (1974). Procedural justice as fairness. Stanford Law Review, 26, 1271.
71.
TittleC. R.WardD. A.GrasmickH. G. (2003). Self-control and crime/deviance: Cognitive vs. Behavioral measures. Journal of Quantitative Criminology, 19, 333–365.
72.
TurneyK. (2021). The mental health consequences of vicarious adolescent police exposure. Social Forces, 100(3), 1142–1169. https://doi.org/10.1093/sf/soab035
73.
TylerT. R. (2003). Procedural justice, legitimacy, and the effective rule of law. Crime and Justice, 30, 283–357.
74.
TylerT. R. (2004). Enhancing police legitimacy. The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 593, 84–99.
75.
TylerT. R. (2005). Policing in black and white: Ethnic group differences in trust and confidence in the police. Police Quarterly, 8(3), 322–342.
76.
TylerT. R. (2006). Why people obey the law. Princeton University Press.
77.
TylerT. R.HuoY. (2002). Trust in the law: Encouraging public cooperation with the police and courts. Russell SAGE Foundation.
78.
VaughnM. G.DeLisiM.MattoH. C. (2013). Human behavior: A cell to society approach. John Wiley & Sons.
79.
VazsonyiA. T.MikuškaJ.KelleyE. L. (2017). It’s time: A meta-analysis on the self-control-deviance link. Criminal Justice Journal, 48, 48–63.
80.
WolfeS. E. (2011). The effect of low self-control on perceived police legitimacy. Criminal Justice Journal, 39, 67–74.
Supplementary Material
Please find the following supplemental material available below.
For Open Access articles published under a Creative Commons License, all supplemental material carries the same license as the article it is associated with.
For non-Open Access articles published, all supplemental material carries a non-exclusive license, and permission requests for re-use of supplemental material or any part of supplemental material shall be sent directly to the copyright owner as specified in the copyright notice associated with the article.
