Female Arab Teenagers’ Involvement in Antisocial Behavior: Intersection of Mediating-Moderating effects

Session Submission Type: Complete Thematic Panel

Abstract/Description

Based on intersectionality theory, the present study examined the contribution of direct, indirect, and interactive effects of individual, family, peer, and contextual factors on violence against others among female Arab teenagers. The study is based on a sample of 193 at-risk teenagers aged 12–21, who completed questionnaires in their out-of-home care settings. The findings showed that the association between sexual victimization and moderate physical violence against others was mediated by the teenagers’ affiliation with delinquent peers and moderated by perceived ethnonational discrimination. Finally, for participants with medium or high levels of perceived ethnonational discrimination, the associations between sexual victimization and perpetration of moderate physical violence, and between sexual victimization and peer delinquency, were stronger than for participants with low perceived discrimination. Examining the association between sexual victimization and violence perpetration is important, especially among at-risk teenagers in a conservative society, which expects victimized adolescents and young women to remain silent, given that silencing increases the risk of victims’ involvement in delinquency and antisocial behavior. Intervention programs should be sensitive to the special situation of at-risk teenagers who experience marginalization consisting of several risk factors, including membership in an ethnonational minority and a traditional society in the context of a political conflict.

Sub Unit

• Area IV. Correlates of Crime / 32. Bullying, Harassment, and Abuse

Individual Presentations

• Indirect aggression among Arab Female Teenagers in Israel: The Mediating Role of Affiliation with Delinquent Peers and Moderating Role of Closeness to Parents - Lana Jamal Jeries, University of Cambridge

• Gender Discrimination towards Female Arab Teenagers in Israel and Their Involvement in Severe Violence: The Mediating Role of Closeness to Parents - Lana Jamal Jeries, University of Cambridge

• Female Arab Teenagers’ Involvement in Antisocial Behavior: Intersection of Perceived Ethnonational Discrimination, Sexual Victimization, and Affiliation With Delinquent Peers - Lana Jamal Jeries, University of Cambridge; Mona Khoury, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem