Unstructured Socializing, Delinquent Behavior, and Victimization: A Genetically Informed Analysis of Twin Pairs

• In Event: Environmental Influences on the Development of Behavior and Victimization

Abstract

A large body of research provides evidence of an association between time spent in unstructured socializing with peers and involvement in various forms of delinquent behavior. Recent work also indicates that unstructured socializing is associated with victimization. Yet, absent from these two lines of research is 1) a consideration of the genetic and environmental underpinnings of unstructured socializing and 2) whether the association between unstructured socializing and both delinquency and victimization is spurious owing to genetic confounds. To examine these issues we make use of data from the twin sub-sample of The National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health.

Authors

• Ryan Charles Meldrum, Florida International University

• J.C. Barnes, University of Cincinnati