Youth who experience maltreatment are at increased risk for delinquent behavior. This pattern in which youth victims become offenders has been termed the Cycle of Violence. This study identifies intervening factors that explain how maltreatment leads to delinquency in order to highlight methods for interrupting the Cycle of Violence. A first primary objective of this study is to determine whether more severe maltreatment leads to more severe delinquency among youth involved in the child welfare system. Next, the study investigates what factors explain the relationship between maltreatment and delinquency, examining mental health, substance use, and school disengagement as potential intervening factors. Finally, this research tests whether pathways from maltreatment to delinquency differ by gender. The study sample is drawn from three waves of the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well-Being (NSCAW) [1999-2003]. This national sample included 1179 youth (age 11-15 at baseline) who were involved in the child welfare system. Data were analyzed using Latent Growth Modeling (LGM). Findings indicate youth who were more severely maltreated had higher levels of initial delinquency and more stable delinquency over time. Sexually abused youth were no more or less likely to report delinquent behavior than youth who experienced other forms of maltreatment, and gender did not affect delinquency patterns. Among the intervening factors, mental health and school disengagement significantly mediated the maltreatment-delinquency relationship. These findings indicate that youth who were more severely maltreated reported more mental health problems (depression and PTSD) and more school disengagement. These problems resulted in youths’ increased risk for delinquent behavior. Substance use did not mediate the maltreatment-delinquency relationship. Substance use was, however, a strong predictor of delinquency among all youth involved in the child welfare system regardless of the level of maltreatment experienced. It is noteworthy that gender did not moderate the relationship between maltreatment and delinquency or any of the mediating effects. Results indicate a need for improved screening and intervention in child welfare to prevent youths’ delinquent behavior and strongly indicate the need for improved cross-system collaboration to bridge services systems. / text

This dissertation examines the role gender plays in predicting referral beyond juvenile court intake. Using referral data from Texas for 1999-2003, multinomial logistic regression is used to examine case processing decisions. Males were found to be more likely than females to be processed beyond intake for both status and delinquent offenses. Legal variables were found to influence processing decisions for delinquent offenses more than non-legal variables. In contrast, non-legal variables were found to influence processing decisions more than legal variables for status offenses. Finally, overall, minority females were not found to be more likely to be processed beyond intake than white females. Further research is needed to determine if the same finding is true for males.

This study examined the connection between household type and delinquency and depressive symptoms for female adolescents. The present study draws its claims from Power-control theory which, at its most abstract level, predicts gender differences in delinquency based on the level of patriarchy in the family and the theoretical works of Sarah Rosenfield, who argues that it is the over control of females that causes them to have higher rates depression than males. This study hoped to build on research that links differences in family type and parental control to sex differences in delinquency by using the Power-control theory to look depressive symptoms among female adolescents. Past studies looking at female delinquency attempt to understand why females are under representative in crime statistics when compared to their male counterparts. These studies focus most of the attention on the social control placed over females. Using the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, the findings showed that, contrary to claims made by power-control theory, patriarchal family did not predict delinquent behavior or depressive symptoms for female adolescents. Further analysis included an instrument of control, parental attachment, risk perceptions and found significant results. Race was also significant in several models. The parent-daughter relationship was most significant in predicting outcomes of depressive symptoms and delinquent behavior. Those who reported close relationships with their parents were less likely to report depressive symptoms and delinquency behavior.

丘海雄. / Thesis (M.A.)--香港中文大學, 1987. / Reprint of manuscript. / Qiu Haixiong. / Thesis (M.A.)--Xianggang Zhong wen da xue, 1987. / 導論 --- p.1 / Chapter 第一章 --- 研究的問題 --- p.8 / Chapter 第二章 --- 理論與假設 / Chapter 第一節 --- 理論回顧 --- p.14 / Chapter 第二節 --- 變項與假設 --- p.21 / Chapter 第三章 --- 研究的方法 / Chapter 第一節 --- 自陳法 --- p.55 / Chapter 第二節 --- 樣本與資料收集過程 --- p.59 / Chapter 第三節 --- 概念的操作化和量度 --- p.63 / Chapter 第四章 --- 研究結果與分析 / Chapter 第一節 --- 兩變項分析 --- p.75 / Chapter 第二節 --- 多變項分析 --- p.79 / Chapter 第三節 --- 男女兩個群體的比較 --- p.98 / Chapter 第五章 --- 結論 / Chapter 第一節 --- 研究結果 --- p.107 / Chapter 第二節 --- 局限性 --- p.112 / Chapter 第三節 --- 討論與建設 --- p.114 / 注釋 --- p.117 / 中文參考資料 --- p.1 / 英文參考資料 --- p.1