OCR A2 Forensic Study - JUBY & FARRINGTON

JUBY & FARRINGTON
2001…read more

BACKGROUND
Many would argue that the biggest influence on criminality
is the family
Partaking in illegal activity is easier when an individual grows
up in a household where criminal thinking is the norm.
If you family are criminals it is likely that you to would
become a criminal
Furthermore, children who do not receive discipline for their
inappropriate actions learn that they can get away with
doing the wrong thing
However, these are deterministic explanations, ignoring
individual differences
Some people from disruptive families do tend to buck the
trend and turn their lives around
Conversely, those from law abiding families can go on to
become criminals…read more

STUDY TO SUPPORT
A study to support the idea of upbringing being the
reason for criminality is by Juby & Farrington
(2001)
The AIM of this study was to document delinquency
rates among boys living in permanently disrupted
families compared with those from non disrupted
families
The HYPOTHESIS states that: Delinquency is more
common among boys from permanently disrupted
families…read more

STUDY TO SUPPORT
Prospective Longitudinal Study
411 boys aged 8 and 9 in 1961
The sample was obtained from the
registers of 6 state schools in south
London
Predominately white working class
Data was collected throughout the boys
lives until the age of 50
Data was collected from the boys, parents
and teachers…read more

STUDY TO SUPPORT
Data Included:
Juvenile and adult convictions
Self reported delinquency
Intelligence & Personality Tests- From age 8 ­ 46
Interviews with boys- From age 8 ­ 46
Annual Interviews with parents- From age 8 ­ 15
Parents reported on family income & family situation
Questionnaires filled out by teachers on truancy and
school behaviour- From age 8-15
Data regarding criminal offences was gathered from the
Criminal Record Office…read more

STUDY TO SUPPORT: Results
Delinquency rates were similar in disrupted families
(29% convicted) than those in intact high conflict
families (18% convicted)
Disruptions caused by parental disharmony were
more damaging than parental death
Boys who lost their mothers were more likely to be
delinquent than those who lost their fathers
The number of offences and offenders
peaked at age 17
The boys who started criminal careers at age 10-13
nearly all re-convicted once (91%).…read more