Strain During Reentry: A Test of General Strain Theory Using a Sample of Adult Former Prisoners

2021 ◽  
pp. 003288552110296
Author(s):  
Lin Liu ◽  
Christy A. Visher ◽  
Daniel J. O’Connell
Keyword(s):  
General Strain Theory ◽  
Theoretical Perspective ◽  
Strain Theory ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Financial Difficulty ◽  
Criminal Propensity ◽  
Former Prisoners ◽  
Different Dimensions ◽  
General Strain

The majority of reentry studies focus on identifying different dimensions of reentry needs among released prisoners. Less explored is the mechanism by which unfulfilled reentry needs cause reentry failure. Applying the general strain theoretical perspective, this study aims to use an emotional and psychological prism to explain why released prisoners are likely to experience reentry failure when their reentry needs are not met. Findings demonstrate that the strains from financial difficulty and family neglect are positively associated with post-release criminal propensity, and depression noticeably mediated the effects of strains. Implications for correctional policymaking and future research are discussed.

The Strain From Procedural Injustice on Parolees: Bridging Procedural Justice Theory and General Strain Theory

2019 ◽  
Vol 66 (2) ◽  
pp. 250-276 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lin Liu ◽  
Christy A. Visher ◽  
Daniel J. O’Connell
Keyword(s):  
Longitudinal Study ◽  
Procedural Justice ◽  
General Strain Theory ◽  
Negative Emotion ◽  
Prisoner Reentry ◽  
Strain Theory ◽  
Criminal Propensity ◽  
Procedural Injustice ◽  
General Strain ◽  
Using Data

The procedural justice literature explains why people obey the law. However, prior research has largely neglected the implication of procedural justice in the correctional context in general and in parole efficacy in particular. In an attempt to bridge the propositions of procedural justice and general strain theory, this study assesses the effect of parolees’ perceived procedural injustice on their success in reentry. Using data from a longitudinal study of prisoner reentry, we investigate the nexus of procedural injustice, negative emotions, family bonds, and postrelease criminal propensity. Findings indicate that procedural injustice increases criminal propensity, and the negative emotion of depression partially mediates this relationship. We also find parolees’ family bonds totally mediate the effect of procedural injustice on criminal propensity.

scholarly journals Pathways to Self-Injury: A Qualitative Exploration of Social Psychological Processes

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Wojciechowski
Keyword(s):  
Social Learning ◽  
General Strain Theory ◽  
Strain Theory ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Social Control Theory ◽  
Social Psychological ◽  
Temporal Dimension ◽  
Self Injury ◽  
Causal Pathway ◽  
General Strain

Self-injury is a deviant behavior often understood as the intentional infliction of harm onto one’s own body that exists absent of suicidal. This study uses a qualitative methodology to examine the etiology and perpetuation of self-injury using the terminology of relevant social-psychological theories to determine which processes best describe a causal pathway leading to self-injury and its perpetuation after the onset of the behavior. Data obtained from 16 semi-structured interviews with former and current self-injurers indicate that the processes described in general strain theory, social learning theory, and social control theory are all important for understanding the etiology and perpetuation of self-injury. Analytic induction was utilized as the method of analysis in order to parse out only the elements universal to pathways to self-injury evident in all of the examined cases. All participants used self-injury as coping response for mitigating negative affect stemming from strain, thus, implicating general strain theory as important for understanding the onset of self-injury. Participants were categorized into two subtypes of self-injurers based upon the temporal dimension of the social learning process. Future research should attempt to use quantitative methodologies to provide generalizability for the results of this study and examine how changes in risk and protective factors over the life-course modify one’s propensity to engage in self-injury.

scholarly journals Are the Effects of Poverty and Victimization on Criminal Recidivism Mediated by Depression as Predicted by General Strain Theory? A Longitudinal Study of Provincially Sentenced Women

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer E. Newman
Keyword(s):  
General Strain Theory ◽  
Female Offenders ◽  
Strain Theory ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Criminal Recidivism ◽  
General Strain ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Provincially Sentenced

The current study is a longitudinal analysis of psychosocial factors contributing to re-offending among 125 adult female offenders. Drawing on General Strain Theory (GST), the study examined the role of victimization and poverty on criminal recidivism and investigated whether this relationship was mediated by depression. Regression, survival, and mediational analyses were employed to examine the impact of these variables on criminal recidivism. Findings revealed that using illegal means to make ends meet, and having survived childhood sexual abuse, were particularly important predictors of recidivism for women in the study sample, although depression was not found to significantly mediate the relationship between strain and recidivism. Implications for future research on female recidivism and helping women to stay crime-free are discussed.

The Effects of Criminal Propensity and Strain on Later Offending

2016 ◽  
Vol 63 (13) ◽  
pp. 1655-1681 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jessica M. Craig ◽  
Stephanie M. Cardwell ◽  
Alex R. Piquero
Keyword(s):  
Antisocial Behavior ◽  
General Strain Theory ◽  
Strain Theory ◽  
Adolescent Offenders ◽  
Longitudinal Sample ◽  
Criminal Propensity ◽  
Vicarious Victimization ◽  
General Strain ◽  
The Impact

Recently, Agnew has narrowed the focus of General Strain Theory by arguing certain factors must converge for criminal coping to occur. Specifically, individuals must have certain crime-related traits, experience strains that are perceived as unjust and high in magnitude, and occur in situations that encourage criminal coping. A longitudinal sample of serious adolescent offenders was used to assess the impact of direct and vicarious victimization on later offending among those with higher and lower criminal propensity. Regardless of their criminal propensity, youth who experienced victimization were more likely to engage in antisocial behavior compared with those who were not victimized. The results are mixed regarding Agnew’s thesis and suggest that victimization experiences may push justice-involved youth into further crime.

General Strain Theory, Peer Rejection, and Delinquency/Crime

2010 ◽  
Vol 43 (4) ◽  
pp. 1272-1297 ◽  
Author(s):  
George E. Higgins ◽  
Nicole L. Piquero ◽  
Alex R. Piquero
Keyword(s):  
Children And Adolescents ◽  
General Strain Theory ◽  
Life Experiences ◽  
Peer Rejection ◽  
National Sample ◽  
Strain Theory ◽  
Joint Analysis ◽  
Future Research ◽  
General Strain ◽  
Using Data

The development of general strain theory (GST) has led to a renewed focus on the influence of negative life experiences on antisocial behavior. Although a number of studies have generated an impressive array of support for the theory, several avenues remain open for research. In this article, we examine how a specific noxious stimuli, peer rejection, relates to delinquency/crime, and the degree of shared relation among peer rejection and delinquency/crime. Using data from a national sample of 413 children and adolescents, analyses indicated two highly stable trajectories of peer rejection and three trajectories of delinquency/crime, that peer rejection and delinquency/crime were not strongly related in general, but a joint analysis of their relationship revealed that high peer rejection was related to high delinquency/crime among males but not among females. Implications and directions for future research are highlighted.

Race, Crime, and General Strain Theory

2010 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 170-186 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicole Leeper Piquero ◽  
Miriam D. Sealock
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Criminal Justice System ◽  
Justice System ◽  
General Strain Theory ◽  
Strain Theory ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Racial Groups ◽  
Research Directions ◽  
Future Research Directions ◽  
General Strain

A key criminological observation is the overrepresentation of minorities—especially African Americans—in the criminal justice system. Whether this difference is due to differential enforcement by the criminal justice system, differential participation by individuals, or some combination of these two perspectives is a source of much debate and controversy. Unfortunately, few theories have been developed and/or extended to understand race differences in crime. This article applies Agnew’s General Strain Theory (GST) as one potentially useful framework. Results indicate that GST variables operated as expected across the different models and that significant differences did emerge across racial groups. Theoretical implications and future research directions are highlighted.

Bullying Victimization and Weapon Carrying: A Partial Test of General Strain Theory

2021 ◽  
pp. 0044118X2110369
Author(s):  
Stephen N. Oliphant
Keyword(s):  
General Strain Theory ◽  
Nonlinear Effects ◽  
Theoretical Framework ◽  
Strain Theory ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Bullying Victimization ◽  
Weapon Carrying ◽  
Two Measures ◽  
General Strain ◽  
Index Measure

Much of the existing research on adolescent firearm and weapon carrying lacks a theoretical framework. Relatedly, few studies have examined the relationship between weapon carrying and bullying victimization experienced at school, which has been established as a key strain in adolescence. The present study seeks to provide a partial test of general strain theory as a theoretical framework to explain adolescent weapon carrying. Using a large U.S. sample of 7th through 10th grade students ( n = 8,867), I find qualified support for general strain theory. While an index measure of bullying victimization was positively associated with weapon carrying as expected, two measures assessing specific forms of bullying victimization had nonlinear effects that are inconsistent with the theory. The proportion of one’s friends who carry weapons was consistently one of the strongest predictors of a respondent’s own weapon carrying. Implications and directions for future research are discussed.

Life Stress, Strain, and Deviance Across Schools: Testing the Contextual Version of General Strain Theory in China

2017 ◽  
Vol 62 (8) ◽  
pp. 2447-2460 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jinwu Zhang ◽  
Jianhong Liu ◽  
Xin Wang ◽  
Anquan Zou
Keyword(s):  
Life Stress ◽  
General Strain Theory ◽  
Strain Theory ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Research Directions ◽  
Individual Strain ◽  
Future Research Directions ◽  
General Strain ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Theory Test

General Strain Theory delineates different types of strain and intervening processes from strain to deviance and crime. In addition to explaining individual strain–crime relationship, a contextualized version of general strain theory, which is called the Macro General Strain Theory, has been used to analyze how aggregate variables influence aggregate and individual deviance and crime. Using a sample of 1,852 students (Level 1) nested in 52 schools (Level 2), the current study tests the Macro General Strain Theory using Chinese data. The results revealed that aggregate life stress and strain have influences on aggregate and individual deviance, and reinforce the individual stress–deviance association. The current study contributes by providing the first Macro General Strain Theory test based on Chinese data and offering empirical evidence for the multilevel intervening processes from strain to deviance. Limitations and future research directions are discussed.

scholarly journals Are the Effects of Poverty and Victimization on Criminal Recidivism Mediated by Depression as Predicted by General Strain Theory? A Longitudinal Study of Provincially Sentenced Women

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennifer E. Newman
Keyword(s):  
General Strain Theory ◽  
Female Offenders ◽  
Strain Theory ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Criminal Recidivism ◽  
General Strain ◽  
The Impact ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Provincially Sentenced

The current study is a longitudinal analysis of psychosocial factors contributing to re-offending among 125 adult female offenders. Drawing on General Strain Theory (GST), the study examined the role of victimization and poverty on criminal recidivism and investigated whether this relationship was mediated by depression. Regression, survival, and mediational analyses were employed to examine the impact of these variables on criminal recidivism. Findings revealed that using illegal means to make ends meet, and having survived childhood sexual abuse, were particularly important predictors of recidivism for women in the study sample, although depression was not found to significantly mediate the relationship between strain and recidivism. Implications for future research on female recidivism and helping women to stay crime-free are discussed.

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