NCJ Number
95105
Journal
Criminology Volume: 22 Issue: 3 Dated: (August 1984) Pages: 403-419
Date Published
1984
Length
13 pages
Annotation
Recent research on deterrence has begun to couch discussions of legal sanctions in the context of broader perspectives that take account of other factors that may inhibit law violation.
Abstract
Such an approach can answer significant questions about the importance of legal sanctions relative to other variables. In this research, a three-variable inhibitory model suggested by Grasmich and Green (1980) was tested using panel data from a large sample of adolescents. Internalized normative constraint was found to be the strongest predictor of subsequent delinquency. However, perceptions of the risk of both formal and informal sanctions add significantly to the model's explanatory power. Interaction effects were noted that suggest sanction threats may have a compensatory effect where internal constraints are weak. (Publisher abstract)