Do School Conditions Affect Delinquency? Testing of Agnew's Strain Theory

• In Event: Research on the Impact of School Conditions, the Role of Cultural Factors, the Conditioning Hypotheses, and the Empirical Evidence of General Strain Theory

Abstract

This paper focuses on the effect of strain on delinquency. Specifically, framed by Agnew's strain theory, it was assessed whether school strain had an association with multiple types of delinquency among students in different schools in a Ukrainian City, Lviv. The theory was partially supported. Satisfaction with school, doing poorly in school, and being disturbed by classmates were found to be moderately associated with delinquency. However, the relationship between school strain and delinquency was not meditated by anger. In addition, the effect of school strain on delinquency changed significantly when moderated by self-efficacy and self-esteem. Thus, this study contributes to the literature by focusing on school strain which was not widely used before, incorporating mediating variable anger, and including moderating variables such as self-esteem and self-efficacy.

Authors

• Anastasiia Kuptsevych, University of Miami

• Olena Antonaccio, University of Miami

• William R. Smith, North Carolina State University