Can the General Theory of Crime and General Strain Theory Explain Cyberbullying Perpetration?

2017 ◽  
Vol 64 (5) ◽  
pp. 674-700 ◽  
Author(s):  
Helen Lianos ◽  
Andrew McGrath
Keyword(s):  
General Theory ◽  
General Strain Theory ◽  
Online Communication ◽  
Strain Theory ◽  
Self Control ◽  
General Theory Of Crime ◽  
Theory Of Crime ◽  
General Strain ◽  
Low Self Control ◽  
The Relationship

Cyberbullying is an increasingly common characteristic of contemporary online communication. The current study surveyed 320 Internet-active young adults and found up to 80% reported engaging in this behavior at least once. In addition, the ability of the general theory of crime and general strain theory to explain cyberbullying perpetration was tested. Evidence for both theories was observed, with both low self-control and higher levels of strain related to cyberbullying perpetration. Furthermore, opportunity (operationalized as moderate and high number of hours online) interacted with low self-control to increase perpetration, and anger partially mediated the relationship between strain and cyberbullying. Implications of the findings are discussed.

Low Self-Control, Victimization, and Financial Hardship: Does Low Self-Control Moderate the Relationship Between Strain and Criminal Involvement?

2020 ◽  
Vol 65 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-23
Author(s):  
Cashen M. Boccio ◽  
Kevin M. Beaver
Keyword(s):  
General Strain Theory ◽  
Strain Theory ◽  
Self Control ◽  
Interactive Effects ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Criminal Involvement ◽  
General Strain ◽  
Nationally Representative ◽  
Low Self Control ◽  
The Relationship

General strain theory has been widely supported by empirical research. Research concerning possible individual-level moderators of the effects of strain, however, has yielded considerably mixed results. The current study addresses this gap in the literature by examining whether levels of self-control moderate the relationship between strain and criminal involvement in a large nationally representative sample. Our findings reveal that strain and levels of self-control have both additive and interactive effects on criminal involvement. To illustrate, respondents who were exposed to higher levels of strain reported more criminal involvement than respondents exposed to lower levels of strain. Similarly, lower levels of self-control were associated with higher levels of criminal involvement. In addition, levels of self-control were found to moderate the association between experiencing strain and two of the criminal involvement measures. Furthermore, the results suggest that the relationships among strain, self-control, and criminal involvement may vary across gender and forms of strain.

Quick on the Draw

2017 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 213-234 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher M. Donner ◽  
Jon Maskaly ◽  
Alex R. Piquero ◽  
Wesley G. Jennings
Keyword(s):  
Police Officers ◽  
The United States ◽  
Deadly Force ◽  
Self Control ◽  
General Theory Of Crime ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Theory Of Crime ◽  
Situational Predictors ◽  
Low Self Control ◽  
The Relationship

Police officers have a continuum of force options available to them, but, without question, the most extreme of these options is deadly force. Recent officer-involved shootings in the United States, and their subsequent media attention, have placed police use of deadly force at the forefront of political, academic, and policy conversations. While the extant literature has uncovered numerous structural, organizational, and situational predictors of police shootings, studies to date are more limited with respect to individual-level factors and have essentially ignored criminological theoretical constructs. Using Gottfredson and Hirschi’s general theory of crime as a theoretical framework, the current study fills a gap in the literature by using personal and agency records of 1,935 Philadelphia police officers to examine the relationship between low self-control and officer-involved shootings. The results indicate that officers with lower self-control are significantly more likely to have been involved in a police shooting.

scholarly journals The Relationship Between Self-Control and Friendship Conflict: An analysis of Friendship Pairs

2018 ◽  
Vol 65 (10) ◽  
pp. 1402-1421
Author(s):  
John H. Boman ◽  
Thomas J. Mowen ◽  
Erin D. Castro
Keyword(s):  
General Theory ◽  
Item Response ◽  
The Self ◽  
Self Control ◽  
General Theory Of Crime ◽  
Response Models ◽  
Item Response Models ◽  
Theory Of Crime ◽  
Main Construct ◽  
The Relationship

While Gottfredson and Hirschi’s general theory of crime is one of the most empirically tested theories of deviance, the theory offers hypotheses that range far beyond how self-control should affect behavior. This study is broadly focused on how self-control operates between friends by considering how the general theory’s main construct relates to friendship conflict. Using a large dyadic dataset, three-level hybrid item-response models regress the actor’s proclivity to experience conflict with the friend onto measures of the actor’s self-control, the friend’s self-control, and an interaction between the self-control estimates. Results demonstrate that the actor’s and the friend’s self-control both significantly relate to friendship conflict, as the theory would expect. However, the actor’s and friend’s levels of self-control do not interact.

The General Theory of Crime and Computer Hacking

2011 ◽  
pp. 38-67 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adam M. Bossler ◽  
George W. Burruss
Keyword(s):  
General Theory ◽  
Control Theory ◽  
Self Control ◽  
General Theory Of Crime ◽  
Unauthorized Access ◽  
Computer Hacking ◽  
Computer Hackers ◽  
Theory Of Crime ◽  
Mainstream Society ◽  
Low Self Control

Though in recent years, a number of studies have been completed on hackers’ personality and communication traits by experts in the fields of psychology and criminology, a number of questions regarding this population remain. Does Gottfredson and Hirschi’s concept of low self-control predict the unauthorized access of computer systems? Do computer hackers have low levels of self-control, as has been found for other criminals in mainstream society? If low self-control can predict the commission of computer hacking, this finding would seem to support the generality argument of self-control theory and imply that computer hacking and other forms of cybercrime are substantively similar to terrestrial crime. This chapter focuses on the results of a study where we examined whether Gottfredson and Hirschi’s general theory of crime is applicable to computer hacking in a college sample.

The General Theory of Crime and Computer Hacking

Cyber Crime ◽  
2013 ◽  
pp. 1499-1527 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adam M. Bossler ◽  
George W. Burruss
Keyword(s):  
General Theory ◽  
Control Theory ◽  
Self Control ◽  
General Theory Of Crime ◽  
Unauthorized Access ◽  
Computer Hacking ◽  
Computer Hackers ◽  
Theory Of Crime ◽  
Mainstream Society ◽  
Low Self Control

Though in recent years, a number of studies have been completed on hackers’ personality and communication traits by experts in the fields of psychology and criminology, a number of questions regarding this population remain. Does Gottfredson and Hirschi’s concept of low self-control predict the unauthorized access of computer systems? Do computer hackers have low levels of self-control, as has been found for other criminals in mainstream society? If low self-control can predict the commission of computer hacking, this finding would seem to support the generality argument of self-control theory and imply that computer hacking and other forms of cybercrime are substantively similar to terrestrial crime. This chapter focuses on the results of a study where we examined whether Gottfredson and Hirschi’s general theory of crime is applicable to computer hacking in a college sample.

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