The Effect of Social Control on Delinquent Behavior: A Longitudinal Test

One of the central propositions of labeing theory is that an increase in the severity of societal reaction will lead to an increase in the rate of deviant behavior. This proposition contrasts both with the deterrence approach, which predicts that a stronger societal reaction will reduce the rate of deviant behavior, and with the motivational approach, which predicts that official intervention will have little or no effect on criminal behavior. A model that incorporates these three approaches is tested using a sample of480 fourteen and fifteen y ear old juveniles who were arrested in 1973 and followed for a two-year period. The results of the analysis indicate that indicators of criminal motivation best predict the rate of subsequent arrests in this sample. Except for first offenders, the severity of societal reaction has little impact on the number of subsequent arrests. For first offenders, an increase in the amount of social control results in an increase in the number of subsequent arrests, confirming one aspect of the labeling approach.