Kasna delinkvencija kod adolescenata: uloga želje za autonomijom i druženja s devijantnim vršnjacima
Late Delinquency in Adolescents: The Role of Desire for Autonomy and Deviant Peers Association

Summary/Abstract: For a long time, delinquency that appears in the adolescent period, so-called late delinquency, has been neglected in research. Based on Moffitt's late delinquency theory (1993), the goal of this paper was to explore whether desire for autonomy and deviant peers association, and their interaction, are significant predictors of a late delinquents group, separate for boys and girls. Analyzed data were gathered on 425 students (303 boys) from eight high schools located in the City of Zagreb, aged between 15 and 17. Participants rated their desire for autonomy, and they filled out a questionnaire which measures their association with deviant peers, as well as self-reported risk and delinquent behaviors questionnaire. The results of hierarchical binary logistic analysis showed that the increased desire for autonomy and deviant peers association are significant predictors of a late delinquents group on both samples. However, moderation analyses showed that the interaction of these two variables is not significant in predicting a late delinquents group in the sample of boys, nor in the sample of girls. The results represent a significant contribution to the existing knowledge gap on the risk factors of late delinquency.

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