Lessons of an Honour Code: A Consideration of Conflict-related Processes and Interpersonal Violence

Criminological research has long suggested that attitudes concerned with honour and aggression, such as the ‘street code’, are related to violent offending and victimization. Comparatively, little information is known, however, about the mechanisms through which these attitudes increase violence. Drawing from interactionist perspectives of aggression and subcultural theories, we examine the mediating role of two conflict-related tendencies: disputatiousness and remedial actions. We also examine the extent to which remedial actions moderate the association between disputatiousness and violence. Predictions are tested using longitudinal data from a nationally representative sample of young adults in the United States. Results show that conflict-related tendencies mediate the pathways linking the street code to violent offending and victimization. In addition, remedial actions temper the association between disputatiousness and violence involvement.