Risky Lifestyles, Neighborhood Disadvantage, and the Victim-Offender Overlap

• In Event: Ecological Theories of Crime

Abstract

The victim-offender overlap is a robust association in the criminological literature. Nevertheless, existing research has neglected the social context of this relationship. A few studies have examined the moderating effect of neighborhood disadvantage, but have provided conflicting results regarding the direction of this effect. Furthermore, mediators of this relationship remain elusive and may account for the strength of the relationship across neighborhood contexts. Accordingly, using two waves of data from the Los Angeles Family and Neighborhood Survey, the current study seeks to: 1) examine the effects of neighborhood disadvantage on the relationship between delinquency and victimization in a sample of adolescents; and 2) examine whether criminogenic factors (e.g., delinquent peers) can account for the variation. Theoretical implications will be discussed, as well as directions for future research.

Author

• Christopher Palmore, The Pennsylvania State University