Exploring Identity Development and Its Impact on Deviant Peer Associations and Delinquency

• In Event: Identity, Life-Course Transitions, and Desistance

Abstract

Desistance narratives in qualitative research have demonstrated that individuals may undergo a cognitive shift in their identities that contributes to a reduction in deviant behavior. There is limited quantitative research that directly examines the effect of identity change on crime. Drawing on theories of desistance, it is expected that as individuals age, their identities will strengthen and lead to decreases in delinquent peer associations and antisocial behavior. Employing growth curve models spanning adolescence into early adulthood, the present study examines how within-individual and between-individual effects of identity impact associations with delinquent peers and self-reported delinquency in a sample of serious juvenile offenders. Implications of the findings for policy and theories of desistance are discussed.

Authors

• Megan McConaghy, Temple University

• Jeffrey T Ward, Temple University