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A range of Gene x Environment interactions is associated with antisocial phenotypes, and the evidence is clear that the etiology of antisocial behavior is strongly heritable and that environmental liabilities are important. However, the precise ways that genetic and environmental pathogens interact to predict antisocial behavior are underspecified. The present study shows that the interaction between a polymorphism in a dopamine receptor gene (DRD2) and a criminal father predicts five antisocial phenotypes among African American females (n = 232) in the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health. Genetic risk (as measured by the A1 allele) and a criminal father interacted to predict serious and violent delinquency at Wave I, serious and violent delinquency at Wave 2, and number of police contacts. The current investigation represents the first study to show Gene x Environment interactions in the prediction of antisocial phenotypes using criminal justice system status as an environmental pathogen. Keywords: DRD2; delinquency; violence; family; Gene x Environment interaction; genetics

Criminology has historically maligned biological perspectives despite the scientific rigor of the biological sciences. In recent years, however, a growing number of criminologists are incorporating biological, neurological, genetic, and neuropsychological constructs along with environmental measures into their research. This review explores the relevance of biosocial criminology to the parent discipline of criminology by focusing on its scientific discovery, advanced methodologies, increased theoretical specificity, acknowledgement and illumination of individual differences, and promise of effective policy based on knowledge of human development. In sum, biosocial criminology is a potential fruitful paradigm shift in the scientific study of crime. Keywords: biosocial criminology; criminology; paradigm; philosophy of science; life course

The study of serious, violent, and chronic offenders is a primary research area in criminology; however, its genetic underpinnings are relatively unknown. Based on genetically sensitive data from the National Longitudinal Study ofAdolescent Health (Add Health), this study empirically explored the genetic antecedents ofchronic and dangerous criminal behavior. Controlling for age, gender, cognitive ability, and self-control, the models yielded some significant effects for the genetic polymorphisms dopamine transporter (DAT1) and serotonin transporter (5HTT), and these effects were conditioned by the delinquent peer network within which adolescents were situated--thereby suggesting a significant Gene x Environment interaction. Keywords: DATI; 5HTT; career criminal; delinquency; chronic offending

Gottfredson and Hirschi's theory contained two propositions that have been the source of an emerging line of empirical scrutiny. First, according to the general theory of crime, levels of self-control are largely determined by parental management techniques and not by biogenic factors. Second, Gottfredson and Hirschi argued that low self-control should remain relatively stable over the life course. Data from twins drawn from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health were used to test these two hypotheses. The results of univariate model-fitting techniques revealed that genetic factors accounted for between 52 and 64 percent of the variance in low self-control, with the remaining variance attributable to the nonshared environment. Further, low self-control was stable over a two-year time period (r = .64). Bivariate Cholesky decomposition models indicated that the stability of self-control was determined almost exclusively by genetic factors, and that genetic factors also explained a moderate amount of change in self-control.

Analysis of a sample of twin pairs reveals that diminished language skills are predictive of low self-control and that there are genetic and environmental factors that link the covariation between language and self-control. Language skills are predictive of variation in individual self-control even after controlling for genetic influences.

Based on data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health), the current study was the first to use measures of genetic polymorphisms (DRD2 and DRD4) to empirically examine the onset of crime. Net of the effects of race, age, gender, and low self-control, genetic polymorphisms explained variation in police contacts and arrest, but only among youths in low risk family environments. Moreover, youths with genetic risk factors experienced a later onset than youths without these risk factors. Borrowing from the behavioral and molecular genetics literatures, various interpretations of the findings are discussed as well as a call for increasingly interdisciplinary perspectives in criminology that encompass both sociological and biosocial frameworks.

Using a difference scores approach, this study examines the effects of sibling differences in experiences both within and outside the home on differences in externalizing problem behavior. The results suggest that differences in parental monitoring, sibling interaction, and delinquent peer association are significantly related to sibling differences in externalizing behavior. These effects, however, appear to differ based on the sex composition of the sibling pair. Differential sibling interaction was most consistently related to differences in externalizing behavior. Differential peer association and differential parental monitoring were only significantly related to sibling differences in externalizing behavior for sister pairs and mixed-sex pairs, respectively. The importance of considering nonshared environmental influences in explaining sibling differences in behavior is discussed. Keywords: difference score; externalizing problem behavior; PSID; siblings

Gottfredson and Hirschi's general theory has reaped a substantial amount of empirical support. Recently, attention has focused on the factors associated with the development of self-control. With few and isolated exceptions, most research has examined the ways in which parents contribute to the development of self-control in children. Gottfredson and Hirschi hypothesized, however, that other social institutions, especially schools, may play at least some role in inculcating self-control. The current study addressed this possibility by conducting a series of multilevel models that examined whether the characteristics of schools, and classrooms within schools, were salient to the development of self-control. Using a longitudinal sample of kindergarten and first-grade students, the results revealed that classroom characteristics influenced self-control.

A study to examine the effects of different variants of the dopamine D2 receptor gene (DRD2) are related to victimization, net of the effects of environmental measures is conducted. Analysis of data from National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health showed that gene X environment interaction resulted in creation of victimization in white males.

According to Gottfredson and Hirschi (1990), levels of self-control are determined by parental management techniques, not by biological and genetic influences. Recent behavioral genetic and neuroscientific research challenges this view and reveals that biogenic factors are largely responsible for the development of self-control. The current article builds off this body of literature and argues that Gottfredson and Hirschi's parental socialization thesis should be reformulated to recognize that self-control is just one part of a larger constellation of executive functions that are modulated by the prefrontal cortex of the brain. Using a sample of about 3,000 children, this reformulated thesis was tested by examining whether neuropsychological deficits are predictive of parental and teacher reports of the child's level of self-control. Results revealed that measures of neuropsychological deficits were associated with variability in childhood self-control. Theoretical implications of the findings are discussed. Keywords: biology; brain; executive functions; genetics; low self-control; parents

In recent years, the sustained criticism leveled at juvenile rehabilitation has raised the question of whether the public continues to endorse the correctional policy of saving youthful offenders. However, in a 1998 statewide survey of Tennessee residents, the respondents indicated that rehabilitation should be an integral goal of the juvenile correctional system. They also endorsed a range of community-based treatment interventions and favored early intervention programs over imprisonment as a response to crime. Taken together, these findings revealed that the public's belief in 'child saving' remains firm, and that citizens do not support an exclusively punitive response to juvenile offenders.

Since the early 1970s, criminologists have embraced the view that only broader social justice will reduce crime--a stance that has largely surrendered criminal justice policy to conservatives. Emerging research shows, however that early intervention programs prevent crime and are cost effective. Based on a 1997 survey of Tennessee respondents, the article reports further that the public supports early intervention strongly and prefers it to incarceration as a strategy to reduce offending. Thus, the article contends that early intervention programs, which extend services to at-risk children and families, comprise an important progressive policy initiative that criminologists and policy makers should support., 'As crime has risen to the top of the nation's domestic policy agenda,' observes DiIulio (1996, p. 3), 'so has the need for policy-relevant knowledge.... To be frank,' he continues, [...]

In their best-selling book, The Bell Curve, Herrnstein and Murray argue that IQis a powerful predictor of a range of social ills including crime. They usethis 'scientific reality' to oppose social welfare policies and, in particular,to justify the punishment of offenders. By reanalyzing the data used in TheBell Curve and by reviewing existing meta-analyses assessing the relativeimportance of criminogenic risk factors, the present authors show empiricallythat Herrnstein and Murray's claims regarding IQ and crime are misleading. Theauthors conclude that Herrnstein and Murray's crime control agenda is based onideology, not on intelligent criminology., In the aftermath of the publication of the The Bell Curve: Intelligence and Class Structure in American Life (Herrnstein and Murray 1994), Charles Murray has remained remarkably calm amid a [...]

Based on a national sample of 1,775 youths, the authors explored the relationship of labor market participation on delinquency. Consistent with the limited existing research, the results revealed that working [...]

Byline: John Paul Wright and Kevin M. Beaver Earlier this week, the University of Florida suspended its backup quarterback after a female student accused him of sexually assaulting her on [...]

Gender's role in self-control measures has been largely neglected. Although studies show that males have lower self-control than females, rarely have researchers questioned whether items used to measure self-control should be used for both groups. This study uses a Rasch rating scale analysis to assess item functioning of Grasmick et al.'s 24-item self-control scale for males and females. Using a sample of young adults, results indicate that 33% of the scale items showed differential functioning or item bias; that is, after controlling for self-control, females found one third of the items to be either more or less agreeable than males. Once biased items were removed from the scale, males, on average, still had lower self-control than females. In addition, after excluding biased items from the scale, the effect of self-control on criminal behavior and other outcomes was similar to the effect found with the full 24-item scale. Suggestions for future research on Grasmick et al.'s self-control scale are offered, and limitations of the current study are discussed.

The effects of birth complications and parental involvement on low self-control are examined. The findings reveal that parental involvements is only weakly and inconsistently related to low self-control.

The article focuses on political disparities in the academic disciplines in the U.S. Topics discussed include the use of divergence from parental party affiliation, disparities in the political leanings and party affiliations of university faculty and ratios of Democrats to Republicans in academic disciplines.

Much research implicates parenting in the etiology of delinquency. We draw on Coleman's [Coleman, J. S. (1990). Foundations of Social Theory. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.] social capital perspective to test hypotheses that relate family 'investment' in youth to the production of personal and social capital that, in turn, inhibits misbehavior. Using the well-known National Youth Survey (NYS), we find that family social capital produces the types of social and personal capital envisioned by Coleman, reduces delinquency across time, moderates the effects of misbehavior, and is associated with general positive effects across the life course. The implications associated with the social capital perspective are discussed.

The near hegemony of conservative crime control policies is reinforced by a public idea or narrative about crime that citizens find persuasive: 'Getting tough' with predatory offenders reduces lawlessness. Progressives have long criticized such ideology, but they have been less successful in advancing ideas capable of directing an alternative policy agenda. For three reasons, we suggest that social support may serve as a public idea that can help organize a progressive approach to crime control. First, the idea that we should increase social support to at-risk youths, families, and communities is good criminology because empirical evidence shows that social support is inversely related to individual offending and to macrolevel crime rates. Second, the claim that social support is beneficial makes sense because it resonates with Americans' personal and imagined experiences. Third, social support leads to specific policies that are humane and efficacious - that is, that will improve the lives of those at risk for crime and that will increase the safety of the public.

The article focuses on importance and goals of academic games in helping participants to recognize certain risks so that he can negotiate those risk, advantages of gameanship such as financial rewards and provide access to desirable network.

An introduction is presented in which the editor discusses various reports within the issue on topics including social sciences, civil rights movement, and criminal justice.

The authors discuss their experiences and suggestions in developing, implementing and teaching biosocial criminology. Topics discussed include the joys of teaching biosocial criminology, their fears and apprehensions about teaching biosocial criminology, and the basic structure and content of a biosocial criminology course. A brief overview of the ascension of biosocial criminology into the mainstream of criminology is included.

The results of a survey of Tennessee legislators, prosecutors, and public defenders were compared to the results of a general citizen survey to analyze attitudes toward capital punishment in the two groups. The study is a replication of McGarrell and Sandys's study of Indiana legislators, which found some degree of pluralistic ignorance: both legislators and citizens had misperceptions of the other's attitudes. Results suggested that, similar to their Indiana counterparts, Tennessee legislators overestimate the degree of citizen support for the death penalty.

The article discusses biosocial criminology, as well as the thoughts of the authors on its ascendancy. Aside from the increase in the number of articles and books published on biosocial criminology as of May 2013, colleges and universities offer more classes, and more panels are presented at academic meetings. The authors note that scholars trained in biosocial criminology are part of faculty at Florida State University, University of Cincinnati and University of Texas.

A significant amount of research has examined the interaction between a functional polymorphism in the serotonin transporter gene (5HTTLPR) and stressful life events in the prediction of depression and depressive symptomatology. The results of these studies have produced conflicting evidence, with some studies substantiating a significant interaction and others failing to detect a significant interaction. The purpose of the current study was to add to this line of research by testing for an interaction between 5HTTLPR and perceived stress in the prediction of stable depressive symptomatology. Analysis of data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health) indicates that the association between perceived stress and depression is moderated by 5HTTLPR genotype for females, but not for males. Specifically, females who were homozygous for the short allele were significantly more likely to report symptoms of depression in the face of perceived stress when compared to females who were homozygous or heterozygous for the long allele.

In this article, we examine the influence of pubertal development on misbehavior, as well as examine a series of Gene ×Environment Interactions. Specifically, we examine whether the onset of puberty interacts with preexisting temperamental differences and whether puberty influences peer groups selection. The data for this study come from the public-use version of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, a nationally representative sample of 6,504 adolescents. The results show that pubertal development is a robust predictor of misbehavior (especially for boys) and that puberty interacts with individual differences and with peer group affiliation.

Based on extensive field research, Elijah Anderson argues that the behavior of many youths is influenced by a street culture or “code” that prescribes violent reactions to interpersonal attacks and shows of disrespect. Although Anderson’s account has been well received by the criminological community, questions remain about the validity and generality of his findings. To address these issues, the authors review other (mostly quantitative) studies of youth violence and consider whether the findings of these studies are consistent with Anderson’s account. The authors also conduct analyses to determine whether Anderson’s observations can help to extend the existing body of quantitative research and, hence, further our understanding of youth violence. Overall, the results of this assessment suggest that Anderson’s observations provide valuable insight into the general problem of youth violence and that future research in this area would benefit from greater attention to the social processes he has served to highlight.

Starting in the 1970s, the traditional rehabilitative philosophy of the juvenile court has come under attack, and there has been a sustained effort to subject delinquent youths to more punitive penalties. Despite such “get tough” policies, a competing body of research has developed suggesting that citizens continue to support “saving” wayward children. This study surveyed a random sample of Tennessee residents to determine whether they believed that rehabilitation should be an integral part of juvenile corrections and whether they would become personally involved in this child-saving effort. The results reveal continued support for juvenile rehabilitation and for early intervention programs. In addition, a sizeable minority of respondents was willing to volunteer to help troubled youths. These results suggest that the public recognizes a collective responsibility to intervene in the lives of delinquent and at-risk youths, thereby supporting Hillary Rodham Clinton's belief that “it takes a village” to raise a child.

Modern criminological theory makes contradictory predictions about the possible effects of money on misbehavior. Strain theory suggests that the possession of monetary resources facilitates goal achievement and therefore reduces the likelihood of offending. In contrast, an anomie perspective would view possession of money as a prelude to greater drug use and delinquency. In this study we examine the effect of adolescents' resources - namely, money earned from work and received from parental allowance - on delinquent involvement and drug use. The results tend to be consistent with anomie theory, showing that money and its pursuit are associated positively with misbehavior. The implications for criminological theory are discussed.

Using a statewide sample of 539 Tennessee residents, we explored the extent to which the public supports the death penalty for juveniles. The analysis revealed that a majority of respondents favored juvenile capital punishment, often for young offenders. The respondents, however, were less supportive of juvenile than of adult execution. Most important, as an alternative to juvenile capital punishment, nearly two-thirds of the sample favored life in prison without the possibility of parole (LWOP); four-fifths favored a life sentence with work and restitution requirements (LWOP+W/R). Notably, even among those who endorsed capital punishment for juveniles, a clear majority supported LWOP+W/R. Taken together, these findings reveal that although the public is willing to execute juveniles who commit first-degree murder, they prefer alternative sentencing options that avoid putting youths to death.

In both public and scholarly circles, it often is assumed that employ ment is beneficial to the development of adolescents. To assess this claim, we explored the relationship of working to delinquency among a sample of youths, drawn from the National Youth Survey, who were in school and between the ages of 12 and 19. The analysis revealed that work conditions, especially the number of hours employed, were posi tively associated with delinquent involvement. We argue that these results are consistent with a critical criminological perspective, which would see juvenile employment within its structural context and be sen sitive to how the needs of youths are not served in the prevailing labor market. Accordingly, we caution against a policy agenda that views employment as a panacea for delinquency.