Gender Discrimination towards Female Arab Teenagers in Israel and Their Involvement in Severe Violence: The Mediating Role of Closeness to Parents

• In Event: Youth Delinquency: Correlates and Trends

Abstract

The field of antisocial behaviour has been systematically ignoring women, particularly
from ethnic minorities, probably because they occupy a lower position in society. Based
on intersectionality theory, the current study examined perceptions of being discriminated
against as a result of being a female in a conservative society, which restricts familial
support, and the contribution of such discrimination towards violence against others
amongst female Arab adolescents. The present study is based on a sample of 404 Arab
female adolescents and young women (aged 12–21 years) in Israel. Participants completed
a structured, anonymous self-report questionnaire. The results showed that perpetration
of severe violence by female participants was correlated significantly and
positively with affiliation with delinquent peers, perceived ethnonational discrimination
and sexual victimisation. Conversely, closeness to parents was significantly and negatively
correlated with perpetration of severe violence by female participants. The findings also
showed that the association between gender discrimination and severe physical violence
was mediated by closeness to parents. The findings suggest that traditional patriarchal
attitudes towards gender roles might be a risk factor for antisocial behaviour and involvement
in delinquency. They also highlight the critical role of parental factors in mediating
violent behaviours amongst female adolescents experiencing gender discrimination
in a patriarchal society.

Authors

• Lana Jeries, University of Cambridge

• Mona Khoury, Hebrew University of Jerusalem