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Gender is the strongest and most consistent correlate of crime and delinquency, but the reason is unclear and traditionally understudied in criminology. The current study tests the ability of a general theory of crime and deviance, general strain theory (GST), to explain gender differences in responses to strain. Preliminary research suggests that while girls and boys share many of the same types of strain, they also are exposed to qualitatively different types of strain and experience different types of negative emotions that may lead to gendered patterns of behavioral problems. Moreover, girls are thought to have fewer internal coping resources with which to cope. Using a sample of 1,915 adolescents from Wave 2 of the Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods: Longitudinal Cohort Study (1994-2001), I assess the effects of exposure to violence, sexual victimization, loss of close others, school strain, and fear of victimization on a range of behavioral outcomes including aggressive delinquency, running away, minor theft, substance use, suicidal behavior, and high risk sexual behavior. I also examine the extent to which these effects are mediated by anger, and the conditioning effects of depression and self-efficacy. Results indicate that girls are more exposed to sexual victimization, loss of close others, and fear of victmization, and boys are more exposed to general violence and school strain. However, girls and boys are equally vulnerable to exposure to violence and loss of close others, but respond in gendered ways. Depression and self-efficacy play important roles in explaining the nature of girls' problem behaviors: depression amplifies the effects of exposure to violence, sexual victimization, and loss of close others on running away and suicidality, while reducing the effect of anger on aggressive delinquency. Self-efficacy reduces the effects of exposure to violence and loss of close others on most outcomes, as well as the effect of depression on running away. This research advances the effort to explain how gender influences the complex relationships among strain, negative emotion, selfefficacy, and problematic coping behaviors, and makes a broad contribution to both criminology and the sociology of mental health.

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published_or_final_version / Psychology / Master / Master of Arts

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The objectives of the present study were to: (a) replicate the results of Arthur et al. (2002) by comparing race-based subgroup differences on a multiple-choice and constructed response test in a laboratory setting using a larger sample, (b) extend their work by investigating the role of reading ability, test-taking skills, and test perceptions that could explain why subgroup differences are reduced when the test format is changed from multiple-choice to a constructed response format, and (c) assess the criterion-related validity of the constructed response test. Two hundred sixty White and 204 African Americans completed a demographic questionnaire, Test Attitudes and Perceptions Survey, a multiple-choice or constructed response test, the Raven's Advanced Progressive Matrices Short Form, the Nelson-Denny Reading Test, Experimental Test of Testwiseness, and a post-test questionnaire. In general, the pattern of results supported the hypotheses in the predicted direction. For example, although there was a reduction in subgroup differences in performance on the constructed response compared to the multiple-choice test, the difference was not statistically significant. However, analyses by specific test content yielded a significant reduction in subgroup differences on the science reasoning section. In addition, all of the hypothesized study variables, with the exception of face validity, were significantly related to test performance. Significant subgroup differences were also obtained for all study variables except for belief in tests and stereotype threat. The results also indicate that reading ability, test-taking skills, and perceived fairness partially mediated the relationship between race and test performance. Finally, the criterion-related validity for the constructed response test was stronger than that for the multiple-choice test. The results suggested that the constructed response test format investigated in the present study may be a viable alternative to the traditional multiple-choice format in high-stakes testing to solve the organizational dilemma of using the most valid predictors of job performance and simultaneously reducing subgroup differences and subsequent adverse impact on tests of knowledge, skill, ability, and achievement. However, additional research is needed to further demonstrate the appropriateness of the constructed response format as an alternative to traditional testing methods.