The Influence of Adult Role Statuses on Violent Victimization Reporting
Drawing on data from the National Crime Victimization Survey, this article extends on the contributions from developmental and life course criminologists by investigating the relationship between adult role status and police notification. Our findings point to the important gender differences. Age and reporting are curvilinearly related among female victims but linearly related among males. Having children (in the home) increases the odds of police reporting by female victims, whereas being married does so for male victims. Our findings push forward our understanding of gender and age disparities in self-reporting victimization and highlight the need to better understand how one’s orientation to the criminal justice system changes as he or she transitions in (and out) of adult roles through the life course.