I Ain't Gonna Let No One Disrespect Me: Does the Code of the Street Reduce or Increase Violent Victimization Among African American Adolescents?

• NCJ Number: 216376
• Journal: Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency Volume: 43 Issue: 4 Dated: November 2006 Pages: 427-458
• Author(s): Eric A. Stewart; Christopher J. Schreck; Ronald L. Simons
• Date Published: November 2006
• Length: 32 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This study extended Elijah Anderson's "code-of-the-street" thesis in order to assess whether the street code promoted greater safety or increases the risk for victimization among a longitudinal sample of 720 African-American adolescents from 259 neighborhoods.

Abstract

The findings do not support Anderson's theory that following the street code--being aggressive and violent toward anyone who says or does anything that can be perceived as a personal criticism--promotes respectful behavior and deters potential conflict. Instead, the findings suggest that individuals who adopt the street code have higher levels of victimization than would be expected from living in a dangerous and disadvantaged neighborhood. The findings suggest that the development of a reputation for toughness as a means of gaining respect or deterring victimization requires the promotion of conflict and retaliation in order to establish a reputation for toughness; this creates a cycle of violence. Data were obtained from two waves (1997 and 1999) of the Family and Community Health Study, a multisite investigation of neighborhood and family effects on health and development. Participants were 867 African-American adolescents (400 boys and 467 girls; 462 in Iowa and 405 in Georgia, ages 12-15) and their primary caregivers. Complete data for study variables were obtained from 720 families. The dependent variable was violent victimization at wave two, controlling for wave-one victimization. The adolescents were asked to indicate the number of times they had been physically attacked to the point of physical injury. Independent variables were neighborhood violence, neighborhood disadvantage, and adoption of the street code. The latter was measured by a seen-item, self-report scale at waves one and two. At wave one, the study controlled for a number of factors that had been linked to the outcomes considered in the research. 5 tables, 4 figures, 14 notes, and 77 references