Elevation and Deflation in Self-concept Level Among Juvenile Delinquents: Implications for Placement and Intervention.

The debate regarding whether juvenile delinquents' self-concepts are high or low is explored in this study. Global measures of self-concept have been employed extensively in conjunction with attempts to understand the causal factors involved in delinquency. The present study uses the Self-Description Questionnaire-ll (SDQ-11) to examine the multi-dimensionality of self-concept as defined by Marsh and Shavelson (1985). Should those providing treatment try to raise the global self-concept of the delinquent or should they target the specific dimension of the self-concept that is low? The analysis of data revealed that neither General Self (GS) nor Total Self-concept is low, but other dimensions of delinquents' self-concepts are. The results of this study generally support the advisability of using a more complex, multifaceted instrument to measure self-concept. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]