Victimization, crime propensity and deviance: a multinational test of general strain theory

Teijon Alcala, M; Birkbeck, CH

Abstract

General Strain Theory (GST) identifies victimization as one of the strains most strongly related to crime which, like other sources of strain, is moderated by individual and social factors. Recently, Agnew (2013) extended the theorization of coping strategies by proposing that the effects of strain on deviance are conditioned by individual and social factors in combination, rather than singly, which he labelled crime propensity. Tests of the propensity hypothesis have so far yielded mixed results, highlighting the value of additional studies. Whereas previous tests have focused on single countries, either in North America or Asia, we test the propensity hypothesis using data on adolescents in 25 countries collected through the International Self-Report Delinquency Study (ISRD3; n= 57,760). A series of OLS regressions show that the relationship between victimization and delinquency/substance use is conditioned by the effects of individuals’ crime propensity, thereby supporting the recent extension to GST.

Citation

Teijon Alcala, M., & Birkbeck, C. (2019). Victimization, crime propensity and deviance: a multinational test of general strain theory. Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice, 35(4), 410-430. https://doi.org/10.1177/1043986219870941

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jul 30, 2019
• Online Publication Date: Aug 21, 2019
• Publication Date: Aug 21, 2019
• Deposit Date: Aug 8, 2019
• Publicly Available Date: Aug 8, 2019
• Journal: Journal of Contemporary Criminal Justice
• Print ISSN: 1043-9862
• Electronic ISSN: 1552-5406
• Publisher: SAGE Publications
• Volume: 35
• Issue: 4
• Pages: 410-430
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1043986219870941
• Publisher URL: https://doi.org/10.1177/1043986219870941
• Related Public URLs: https://uk.sagepub.com/en-gb/eur/journal-of-contemporary-criminal-justice/journal200831