Cognition plays a major role in the development of antisocial behavior. The aim of this study was to extend the current state of research regarding the mechanisms of negative peer influence in adolescence by testing whether aggregated classroom attitudes (injunctive norms) predict individual attitudes toward antisocial behavior and vice versa. For…

School suspension is associated with school dropout, crime, delinquency, and alcohol and other drug use for the suspended student. Important research questions are how academic and related factors are relevant to the school suspension process and the generality of the process in different sites. State-representative samples of Grade 7 students (N…

We tested 2 hypotheses derived from Moffitt's (1993) taxonomic theory of antisocial behavior, both of which are central to her explanation for the rise in delinquency during adolescence. We tested whether persistently delinquent individuals become more accepted by their peers during adolescence and whether individuals who abstain from delinquent…

In a study of 5285 8th graders from the Gang Resistance and Education Training (G.R.E.A.T.) research, this study applied Travis Hirschi's social bonding theory to examine the curriculum's efficacy in increasing conventional bonding (friends with positive peers, succeeding at education etc.) and decreasing non-conventional bonding (drug…

Youth gangs have received substantial scholarly and public attention during the past two decades. Although most of the extant research on youth gang members has focused on their offending behaviors, recent studies have examined the victimization of youth gang members relative to their non-gang peers. Gang members generally have been found to be at…

This research examined the potential relationship between adolescent problem behaviors and amount of time spent with violent electronic games. Survey data were collected from 1,254 7th and 8th grade students in two states. A "dose" of exposure to Mature-rated games was calculated using Entertainment Software Rating Board ratings of…

In this study, two longitudinal models of early adolescent risky sexual behaviors (RSB) were compared using a pooled sample of 267 Canadian and Italian adolescents (55% females; 53% Canadians) assessed yearly from grade 8 to 10. We focused on parenting practices (monitoring, control, limit setting), adolescent problem behaviors (antisocial…