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Why is "Bad" Parenting Criminogenic? Implications From Rival Theories

Mississippi State University, junnever{at}soc.msstate.edu

Francis T. Cullen

University of Cincinnati

Robert Agnew

Emory University

This article tests two rival theories: low self-control and differential association and social learning and their competing accounts of why bad parenting matters. The analysis revealed that several dimensions of parenting (including monitoring and caring and parental reinforcement of aggression) affected both low self-control and aggressive attitudes. Both low self-control and aggressive attitudes predicted delinquent involvement and were found to partially mediate the effect of parenting measures on delinquency. The influence of self-control on delinquent involvement was found to vary across levels of aggressive attitudes—adolescents who had aggressive attitudes and little self-control were especially likely to engage in criminal behavior. The results indicate that ineffective parenting is likely to produce low self-control and aggressive attitudes through not only direct control (e.g., monitoring and punishment) but also through modeling. Thus, the findings question the claim by Gottfredson and Hirschi and Akers that they have set forth truly general theories of crime.

Key Words: parenting • crime • aggression • low self-control • delinquency

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