Contribution to the development of Criminology in Brazil: testing theoretical models based on ISRD4 data

• In Event: ISRD panel 2: Results from ISRD4 – focus on national findings

Abstract

Although Brazil has significant scientific and technological development, Criminology does not exist as a specific area of knowledge, nor as an autonomous career. This means that most Brazilian studies on crime and violence are developed by scientists from different disciplines independently, without integration. As a result, social/governmental responses to prevent or mitigate crime and violence are fragmented, and always prove insufficient/inefficient. Regarding the phenomenon of juvenile delinquency, the Brazilian database from ISRD4 presents an opportunity for testing prominent criminological models or theories, which can help in the development of Criminology in Brazil. The Brazilian team at ISRD4 is thus working in this direction, based on data obtained from 1,956 investigated adolescents, through structural equation modeling. Initially, the General Theory of Crime (GTC) was tested, focusing on self-reported offenses as the dependent variable. The model proved reliable and explained 25% of the variance. Then, aiming for greater refinement, the GTC was tested focusing only on self-reported violent offenses. The model proved reliable and explained 16% of the variance. In both models, the dimension of self-control "sensation seeking" was significant, while impulsivity was not. Lastly, to introduce more complexity to the model, the variables "deviant parental behavior" within the family context and « morality », directly interacting with self-control, were incorporated. However, this latter model yielded unreliable parameters and displayed some inconsistent relationships. Nevertheless, in a simple correlation analysis, « deviant parental behavior », « sensation seeking », and « morality » emerged as the variables showing the strongest significant correlations with both overall offenses and violent offenses. Thus, by testing models/theories developed in other sociocultural contexts, we are moving closer to identifying models that are more relevant to Brazilian reality.

Authors

• Marina Rezende Bazon, University of São Paulo

• André Vilela Komatsu, University of Sao Paulo

• Ana Beatriz do Prado Schiavone, University of Sao Paulo

• Rafaelle CS Costa, University of Sao Paulo