Social Bonds or Social Support? Exploring the Relationships between Strain and Fraud Crime Among Youth

• In Event: Poster Session 2

Abstract

Applying the general strain theory of crime, this research employs National Youth Survey data of 1983 and 1987 to investigate the ways in which social bond and social support moderate the relationship between strain and fraudulent behavior among youth. The results from logistic regression analysis indicate that the relationships between strain and fraud crime are moderated by varying degrees of social support and social bond and to varying extents, depending on the specific form of strain encountered. The findings on conditioning effects are inconclusive, with parental monitoring, religiosity and peer support identified as factors that influence the relationship between strain and delinquency. Nevertheless, the orientation of the interaction effect is unforeseen—some bonds increase or decrease the nature of relationships between strain and crime when interacting with social support and vice versa. Subsequent studies should enhance the precision of strain models and assess their effectiveness in different sociocultural settings.

Author

• Md Mahbub Or Rahman Bhuyan, University of Miami