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This research aims to understand how moral disengagement and peer delinquency develop together in adolescents and early adults.

June 17, 2026Journal of AdolescenceOpen Access

“It's Okay, Everyone Else Is Doing It”: Moral Disengagement and Peer Delinquency

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Randomized trial explores the connection between moral disengagement and peer delinquency, indicating their mutual influence in youth.

This research aims to understand how moral disengagement and peer delinquency develop together in adolescents and early adults.
Analyzed self-reported survey data from 1,354 U.S. justice-involved youth across 11 waves.
Utilized an autoregressive latent trajectory framework spanning 7 years from 2000 to 2010.
Examined changes in moral disengagement and peer delinquency over time.
Found coordinated long-term declines in moral disengagement and peer delinquency across adolescence.
Higher levels of moral disengagement linked to persistent elevations in peer delinquency.
Short-term persistence varied during development, with notable but wave-specific cross-lagged associations.

Decrop et al. (2026) studied this question.

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