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Author: McCartan, Lisa Marie
Resulting in 3 citations.
1. McCartan, Lisa Marie
Genetic and Environmental Contributions to Offending Over the Life Course
Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Cincinnati, 2003
Cohort(s): Children of the NLSY79
Publisher: UMI - University Microfilms, Bell and Howell Information and Learning
Keyword(s): Adolescent Behavior; Behavior Problems Index (BPI); Behavior, Antisocial; Behavioral Problems; Children, Behavioral Development; Delinquency/Gang Activity; Genetics; Life Course; Peers/Peer influence/Peer relations

Judith Rich Harris has proposed a controversial and innovative theory in Group Selection Theory. Within the field of criminology, the socialization processes that occur early on in the life course, particularly those within the family, are viewed as being crucial to the development and persistence of antisocial behavior. Instead of arguing along these contemporary lines, that parenting is a critical factor in the development of behavior, Harris argues the opposite: parents have no lasting effect on behavior. GS theory contends that genetic and peer factors are the critical causal variables in the development of behavior. To discern the existence of genetic influence and the strength of the influence, two statistical techniques are employed: Random Effects Regression and DeFries-Fuker (DF) analysis. Using the NLSY-child, the current analysis examined this theory at three points in the life course: childhood, mid-adolescence and late adolescence. Each developmental stage has yielded different results with only some lending support to Harris' theory. The results indicate that both genetic and parental influences are predictive of early child behavior problems and late adolescent delinquency. During mid-adolescence, both genetic and parental measures fail to predict delinquency. However, delinquent peer influence strongly predicts delinquent behavior. These results offer only partial support of GS theory. However, the results strongly support findings from within life-course criminology. The theoretical implications of these results for both GS theory and life course criminology, as well as future research suggestions, are discussed.
Bibliography Citation
McCartan, Lisa Marie. Genetic and Environmental Contributions to Offending Over the Life Course. Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Cincinnati, 2003.
2. McCartan, Lisa Marie
Inevitable, Influential, or Unnecessary?: Exploring the Utility of Genetic Explanation for Delinquent Behavior
Journal of Criminal Justice: An International Journal 35,2 (March/April 2007): 219-233.
Also: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0047235207000220
Cohort(s): Children of the NLSY79, NLSY79 Young Adult
Publisher: Elsevier
Keyword(s): Adolescent Behavior; Behavior Problems Index (BPI); Behavior, Antisocial; Behavioral Problems; Bias Decomposition; Child Self-Administered Supplement (CSAS); Children, Behavioral Development; Crime; Delinquency/Gang Activity; Genetics; Kinship; Parent Supervision/Monitoring; Peers/Peer influence/Peer relations; Siblings

Results indicated three main reasons to include genetic factors into criminological studies: (1) the models that included genetic influence had higher levels of explanatory power than the models without genetic variables; (2) genetic factors were found to interact with environmental factors to jointly influence criminal behavior; and (3) relationships were found between parenting and delinquency, a departure from recent theoretical claims. The findings, on the other hand, were less supportive of the influence of delinquent peers, which failed to predict delinquent behavior in the current study when genetic variables were included in the models. Data were gathered from the 1979 National Longitudinal Survey of Youth (NLSY-Child), an ongoing, longitudinal, perspective study that collects information on children from before birth through young adulthood. Subjects for the current analysis were the children born to women participating in the 1979 NLSY-Child. Children in this cohort were followed up on even years beginning in 1986. The latest wave of data used in the current analysis was gathered in 1996. Variables under analysis included delinquent involvement, parent-child interaction, level of parent-child attachment, parental expectations of children, parental supervision, and delinquent peers. Random effects regression analysis and DF (formerly known as DeFries-Fulker) analysis were used to examine the data. Future research is needed to uncover the mechanisms underlying the relationships between parenting, peers, and genetic influences. Tables, appendixes, notes, references
Bibliography Citation
McCartan, Lisa Marie. "Inevitable, Influential, or Unnecessary?: Exploring the Utility of Genetic Explanation for Delinquent Behavior ." Journal of Criminal Justice: An International Journal 35,2 (March/April 2007): 219-233.
3. McCartan, Lisa Marie
Gunnison, Elaine
Examining the Origins and Influence of Low Self-Control
Journal of Crime and Justice 30,1 (2007): 35-62
Cohort(s): Children of the NLSY79
Publisher: Society of Police and Criminal Psychology
Keyword(s): Behavior, Antisocial; Crime; Delinquency/Gang Activity; Self-Regulation/Self-Control

Permission to reprint the abstract has not been received from the publisher.

According to Gottfredson and Hirschi's General Theory of Crime, ineffective parenting results in low self-control. Low self-control is the critical factor in the occurrence of delinquent behavior. Moffitt's Interactional Theory of Offending also posits that low self-control is related to delinquent and criminal behavior in the form of poor behavioral regulation. Moffitt, however, argues that prenatal injury is the underlying cause of low self-control. In this study, data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth-Child version are used to examine these competing hypotheses. The results indicate that prenatal injury encapsulated within a poor rearing environment is predictive of low self-control. Both parenting factors and low self-control are predictive of late adolescent delinquency. The implications of these findings are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Bibliography Citation
McCartan, Lisa Marie and Elaine Gunnison. "Examining the Origins and Influence of Low Self-Control." Journal of Crime and Justice 30,1 (2007): 35-62.