Does Decreased Parental Support/Bonding or Increased Peer Deviance Lead to a Rise in Delinquency in Early Adolescence? Investigating the Left Side of the Age-Crime Curve

Abstract

The gap in the literature this study sought to fill was whether a reduction in parental support or an increase in peer deviance during early adolescence explains the left or ascending side of the age-crime curve. Employing the control and social learning components of interactional theory as a guide and assessing longitudinal data provided by 845 early adolescent youth (406 boys, 439 girls) followed from a mean age of 11 (Wave 1) to a mean age of 13 (Wave 3), we assessed within-person change in perceived parental support/bonding, perceived peer deviance, and child delinquency using a random intercepts cross-lagged panel design. Results showed that decrements in perceived parental support but not increments in peer deviance between Waves 1 and 2 predicted a rise in delinquency from Wave 2 to Wave 3. Although there were no signs of a peer influence effect, there was evidence of a peer selection effect. As predicted, bidirectional effects failed to surface in this study. These findings support the social control aspects of interactional theory but not the bidirectional aspects and suggest that a criminogenic environment marked by a weakened parental bond may, in part, explain the left side of the age-crime curve.