NCJ Number
184866
Date Published
2000
Length
25 pages
Annotation
This chapter develops the argument that a social-cognitive theory of motivation based on causal attributions can assist in determining culpability in adolescent offenders.
Abstract
The chapter begins with a brief overview of the main principles of attribution theory, focusing on those tenets most pertinent to issues of culpability. Next, the authors describe a program of attribution research with adolescent offenders and those at risk for offending. This research addresses four topics: the attributional biases of delinquent youth, their attitudes about the fairness of the justice system, their understanding of the social functions of accounts such as confession, and the relationship between beliefs about control and adjustment following release from confinement. Through these themes, this chapter applies attributional theory to probe the causal thinking of youthful offenders. The chapter shows that many deviant adolescents have a distinctive way of viewing the world, and this view shapes their decision making in contexts that put them at risk for criminal offending. This chapter also makes the case that the way youthful offenders view their causal world reflects an immaturity in decision making that policymakers should consider when determining youths' degree of culpability for criminal transgressions. 2 tables, 2 figures, and 51 references