Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: Empirical research uniformly supports self-control theory’s central prediction that low self-control significantly affects crime and deviance. As many have noted, however, this research suggests a level of explanatory power that falls short of the bold expectations generated by Gottfredson and Hirschi (1990). This pattern directs attention to the ways in which the theory could be improved. This paper considers one potential improvement—devoting greater attention to whether the effects of self-control depend on features of the social context. With little exception, the theory attributes causal significance to just a single characteristic of individuals (self-control). We argue, however, that the characteristics of social contexts likely condition the effects of self-control—its effects on crime should be significantly amplified by social contexts that increase opportunities or motivations for crime. This is consistent with emerging evidence that the effects of criminal propensity on crime are greatest when propensity is matched by presence in a criminogenic social environment. Moreover, echoing a point made by others (see Grasmick et al., 1993), we see this possibility as logically compatible with self-control theory. Our arguments on this issue are followed by an analysis of data from a national sample of adolescents in which we consider whether the effects of self-control are in fact conditional on features of the social context.