Gottfredson’s and Hirschi’s theory of self-control is so influential in the field of criminology that it is still referred to as the general theory of crime – practice that originated from the book’s name but has since gained a completely new meaning. To say that low self-control developed in childhood years is the cause of crime is to concentrate one’s efforts on dealing with this cause and to ignore other factors explaining juvenile and adult delinquency. It is thus high time to re-evaluate the general theory of crime.
The premise that low self-control is a significant predictor of criminal behavior has been consistently supported by empirical studies (Williams & McShane, 2013). However, a development of this theory postulates that parenting is, perhaps, the most influential factor when it comes to an individual learning self-control, meaning that it needs to be acquired in early childhood, and adults are largely unable to develop it. Surely, there is strong evidence supporting this claim: Hay and Forrest (2006) conducted several studies measuring the impact of parenting on self-control. They found that stability of self-control, both absolute and relative, was present in more than 80 percent of the cases, and only 16 percent showed that substantial changes in self-control can occur after the age of 10. At the same time, even their study confirmed that parental socialization in adolescence and adulthood continued to influence self-control.
This is highly significant because it appears that what scientists and policy-makers have been referring to as parenting implies socialization and bonding: surely, parents play a pivotal role in their child’s life, but, if effective parenting is lacking, strong social bonds with peers and authority figures such as teachers can be a successful substitute. When it comes to one’s relationship with peers, it is somewhat of a vicious circle: low self-control in childhood is likely to lead to peer rejection and consequent delinquency through association with deviant peers (Chapple, 2005). But a comprehensive meta-analysis of the self-control literature the impact of delinquent associations on criminality to be equally strong as the link between self-control and criminal behavior (Pratt & Cullen, 2000). Equally important, a longitudinal twin study found that genetic factors account for 52 to 64 percent of the variance in low self-control (Beaver, Wright, DeLisi & Vaughn, 2008).
The claim that socialization and bonding can have a significant positive influence on one’s self-control and, consequently, propensity to engage in criminal behavior finds more support in adult studies. Gottfredson and Hirschi believed that social bonds such as employment and marriage were a consequence of self-control. Surely, this is the same vicious circle that the research has identified in juvenile delinquency, meaning that low self-control may cause adults to find it difficult to form lasting and fulfilling social relationships. Laub’s and Simson’s study (2003) of boys and men to age 70 has found employment and marriage-related bonds and social bonds to significantly reduce one’s involvement in criminal behavior. This is an important challenge to the general theory of crime that attributes criminal behavior to virtually one single variable that is fixed for life since early childhood. Moreover, even if one assumes that childhood years are largely formative for one’s self-control, this research suggests that delinquent adults are not a lost cause, after all.
Given that the general theory of crime has become the cornerstone of criminal policy and program development, it is of utmost importance to rely on comprehensive research that examines a variety of individual and environmental factors. There appears to be a significant body of research that has important policy implications: perhaps, it is not parenting but socialization and bonding that impact one’s self-control.
References
Beaver, K.M., Wright, J.P., DeLisi, M., & Vaughn, M.G. (2008). Genetic influences on the stability of low self-control: Results from a longitudinal sample of twins. Journal of Criminal Justice, 36, 478-485.
Chapple, C.L. (2005). Self‐control, peer relations, and delinquency. Justice Quarterly, 21(1), 89-106.
Hay, C., & Forrest, W. (2006). The development of self-control: Examining self-control theory’s stability thesis. Criminology, 44(4), 739-774.
Laub, J. H., & Sampson, R. J. (2003). Shared beginnings, divergent lives: Delinquent boys to age 70. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Pratt, T. C., & Cullen, F. T. (2000). The empirical status of Gottfredson and Hirschi’s general theory of crime: A meta-analysis. Criminology, 38, 931–964.
Williams, F.P., & McShane, M.D. (2013). Criminological theory (6th ed). Boston, MA: Pearson.