Age and Adolescent Delinquency: The Changing Relationship among Age, Delinquent Attitude, and Delinquent Activity

Three attitudes toward delinquent activities are postulated: permissiveness toward violence, permissiveness toward acts that result in material damage, and a strictly nonpermissive attitude. It was anticipated that each attitude would be related to a different level of delinquent activity. Questionnaires were distributed to 2,918 Dutch adolescents and young adults (ages 12 to 24 years). Youths with a strictly nonpermissive attitude showed a low and stable level of delinquent activity at every age. Adolescents permissive of causing material damage displayed an intermediate level of delinquent activity, with weak age differences, whereas youths permissive of violence revealed the greatest differences across age groups. The age-attitude interaction was similar for boys and girls although boys engaged in delinquent behavior more often.