Prediction of Delinquent and ADM Behavior from Other Delinquent and ADM Behavior

Abstract

In previous chapters we examined the common correlates of delinquent and ADM behavior, and (in Chapter 3) the direct correlation between different types of delinquent and ADM behavior. In Chapter 6 in particular, we found that although delinquency, substance use, and mental health problems share no direct causal influence common to all three types of behavior, all three had some indirect influences in common. In the present chapter we turn to the prediction of the different types of delinquent and ADM behaviors directly from one another. We do not suggest here that one type of behavior causes another, as, for example, we suggested in Chapter 6 that delinquent peer group bonding (DPGB) causes or leads to delinquent behavior. Instead, we are simply asking to what extent our knowledge of one type of behavior better enables us to predict another.