Giordano, Peggy C.; Millhollin, Toni J.; Pugh, M. D.; Rudolph, Jennifer L. & Al, Giordano E. T.
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Delinquency, Identity, and Involvement in Relationship Violence

Criminology

Abstract

The follow-up interviews involved 721 of the participants. The interviews gathered information on adolescent involvement in juvenile delinquency, physical violence in relationships, identity, and demographic factors. Results revealed that the level of juvenile delinquency in adolescence was a significant predictor of adult reports of involvement in relationship violence for both male and female participants. In addition, women's scores on the Conflict Tactics scale were related to adolescent and adult identities; women who reported that they had been regarded as troublemakers as adolescents and who endorsed statements indexing an angry self-concept in adulthood had higher scores than other women. Findings suggested that a social learning basis may exist for female as well as male expressions of violence, although male perpetration represents a much more serious social and public health problem.