Abstract
Most research on violence has focused on males, but recent studies indicatethat females are also involved in violent crimes. Few studies, to date,have examined whether different or similar models explain male and femaleinvolvement in violent behavior. In the current research, we examine therelative contribution of social bond, self-control and social learningconcepts to the explanation of male and female violent offending. We alsoexplore the unique contribution of gang membership, school environment andprior victimization to these explanatory models. Using a multisite sampleof eighth-grade students, we find that results of a Chow test indicate theneed for separate theoretical models. Despite some similarities, differentfactors account for male and female rates of violent behavior.
Similar content being viewed by others
REFERENCES
Agnew, R. (1989). A longitudinal test of the revised strain theory. J. Quant. Criminol. 5: 373–388.
Agnew, R. (1994). The techniques of neutralization and violence. Criminology 32(4): 555–580.
Archer, D., and McDaniel, P. (1995). Violence and gender: Differences and similarities across societies. In Ruback, R. B., and Weiner, N. A. (eds.), Interpersonal Violent Behaviors, Springer, New York, pp. 63–87.
Avakame, E. (1997). Modeling the patriarchal factor in juvenile delinquency: Is there room for peers, church, and television? Crim. Just. Behav. 24(4): 477–494.
Baskin, D., and Sommers, I. (1993). Females' initiation into violent street crime. Just. Q. 10(4): 559–584.
Bjerregaard, B., and Smith, C. (1993). Gender differences in gang participation, delinquency, and substance use. J. Quant. Criminol. 9(4): 329–355.
Blumstein, A. (1995). Violence by young people: Why the deadly nexus? Natl. Inst. Just. J. August: 2–9.
Box, S. (1981). Deviance, Reality and Society, Holt, Rinehart and Winston, London.
Callaghan, D. M., and Rivera, F. P. (1992). Urban high school youth and hand-guns. JAMA 267: 3038–3042.
Campbell, A. (1991). The Girls in the Gang, 2nd ed., Basil Blackwell, Cambridge, MA.
Canter, R. J. (1982). Sex differences in self-reported delinquency. Criminology 20: 373–394.
Cernkovich, S., and Giordano, P. (1979). Delinquency, opportunity and gender. J. Crim. Law Criminol. 70: 145–151.
Chesney-Lind, M. (1993). Girls, gangs and violence: Anatomy of a backlash. Human. Soc. 17: 321–344.
Chesney-Lind, M. (1995). Girls, delinquency and juvenile justice: Toward a feminist theory of young women's crime. In Price, B., and Sokoloff, N. (eds.), The Criminal Justice System and Women, 2nd ed., McGraw-Hill, New York, pp. 71–88.
Chesney-Lind, M., and Brown, M. (1996). Girls and violence: An overview. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Society of Criminology.
Chesney-Lind, M., Shelden, R. G., and Joe, K. A. (1996). Girls, delinquency and gang membership. In Huff, C. R. (ed.), Gangs in America, 2nd ed., Sage, Thousand Oaks, CA, pp. 185–204.
Curry, G. D. (1998). Female gang involvement. J. Res. Crime Delinq. 35(1): 100–118.
Curry, G. D., and Spergel, I. A. (1988). Gang homicide, delinquency, and community. Criminology 26(3): 381–405.
Curry, G. D., and Spergel, I. A. (1992). Gang involvement and delinquency among Hispanic and African-American adolescent males. J. Res. Crime Delinq. 29: 273–291.
Curry, G. D., Ball, R. A., and Fox, R. J. (1994). Gang crime and law enforcement recordkeeping. Research in Brief, U.S. Department of Justice, National Institute of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Washington, DC.
Decker, S. H., and VanWinkle, B. (1996). Life in the Gang: Family Friends, and Violence, Cambridge University Press, New York.
Deschenes, E., Rosenbaum, J., and Fagan, J. (1990). Gender differences in delinquency and drug use: A social development perspective. Paper presented at the annual meetings of the American Society of Criminology.
Elliott, D. (1988). Gender, Delinquency and Society: A Comparative Study of Male and Female Offenders and Juvenile Justice in Britain, Aveburyy Gower, Aldershot, England.
Elliott, D. S., Huizinga, D., and Ageton, S. S. (1985). Explaining Delinquency and Drug Use, Sage, Beverly Hills, CA.
Ember, C. R., and Ember, M. (1995). Issues in cross-cultural studies of interpersonal violence. In Ruback, R. B., and Weiner, N. A. (eds.), Interpersonal Violent Behaviors, Springer, New York, pp. 25–42.
Eron, L. D., and Huesmann, L. R. (1989). The genesis of gender differences in aggression. In Luszez, M. A., and Nettelbeck, T. (eds.), Psychological Development: Perspectives Across the Life-Span, North-Holland, Elsevier Science, Amsterdam, pp. 55–67.
Esbensen, F., and Huizinga, D. (1993). Gangs, drugs, and delinquency in a survey of urban youth. Criminology 31(4): 565–590.
Esbensen, F., and Winfree, L. T. (1998). Race and gender differences between gang and nongang youth: Results from a multisite survey. Just. Quart. 15(3): 505–526.
Esbensen, F., Huizinga, D., and Weiher, A. (1993). Gang and non-gang youth: Differences in explanatory factors. J. Contemp. Crim. Just. 9(2): 94–216.
Esbensen, F., Winfree, L. T., and Osgood, D. W. (1997). When is a gang a gang? Definitional issues. Paper presented at the American Society of Criminology Annual Meeting.
Fagot, B., and Hagan, R. (1985). Aggression in toddlers: Responses to the assertive acts of boys and girls. Sex Roles 12: 341–351.
Fagan, J. (1990). Social processes of delinquency and drug use among urban gangs. In Huff, C. R. (ed.), Gangs in America, Sage, Newbury Park, CA, pp. 183–219.
Fagan, J., and Jones, S. J. (1984). Toward a theoretical model for intervention with violent juvenile offenders. In Mathias, R., DeMuro, P., and Allinson, R. (eds.), Violent Juvenile Offenders: An Anthology, National Council on Crime and Delinquency, San Francisco.
Fagan, J., and Pabon, E. (1991). Contributions of delinquency and substance use to school dropout. Youth Soc., 21: 306–354.
Fagan, J., Piper, E. and Moore, M. (1986). Violent delinquents and urban youth. Criminology 24: 439–466.
Farnworth, M. (1984). Male-female differences in delinquency in a minority-group sample. Res. Crime Delinq. 21(3): 191–212.
Florence, J. M., and Moga, J. L. (1996). Circles of friends: The role of gender and networks in delinquent group dynamics. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Society of Criminology, Chicago, IL.
Fox, J. A. (1996). Trends in Juvenile Violence: A Report to the United States Attorney General on Current and Future Rates of Juvenile Offending, U.S. Department of Justice, Washington, DC.
Giordano, P. (1978). Research note: Girls, guys and gangs: The changing social context of female delinquency. J. Crim. Law Criminol. 69(1): 126.
Gottfredson, M. R., and Hirschi, T. (1990). A General Theory of Crime, Stanford University Press, Stanford, CA.
Grasmick, H. G., Tittle, C. R., Bursik, R. J., and Arneklev, B. J. (1993). Testing the core assumptions of Gottfredson and Hirschi's general theory of crime. J. Res. Crime Delinq. 30: 5–29.
Hagan, J. (1989). Micro-and macro-structures of delinquency causation and a power-control theory of gender and delinquency. In Messner, S. F., Krohn, M. D., and Liska, A. E. (eds.), Theoretical Integration in the Study of Deviance and Crime: Problems and Prospects, State University of New York Press, New York, pp. 213–227.
Hagan, J., Simpson, J., and Gillis, A. R. (1987). Class in the household: A power-control theory of gender and delinquency. Am. J. Sociol. 92: 788–816.
Harris, M.C. (1988). Cholas: Latino Girls and Gangs, AMS Press, New York.
Hindelang, M. (1971). Age, sex, and the versatility of delinquent involvement. Soc. Problems 18(4): 522–535.
Hindelang, M., Hirschi, T., and Weis, J. G. (1981). Measuring Delinquency, Sage, Beverly Hills, CA.
Howell, J. (1994). Recent gang research: Program and policy implications. Crime Delinq. 40: 495–515.
Huff, C. R. (ed.) (1990). Gangs in America, Sage, Newbury Park CA.
Huizinga, D. (1991). Assessing violent behavior with self-reports. In Milner, J. S. (ed.), Neuropsychology of Aggression, Kluwer, Boston, MA.
Huizinga, D. (1997). Gangs and the volume of crime. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the Western Society of Criminology.
Huizinga, D., and Elliott, D. S. (1987). Juvenile offenders: Prevalence, offender incidence, and arrest rates by race. Crime Delinq. 33: 206–223.
Huizinga, D., Esbensen, F., and Weiher, A. W. (1991a). Are there multiple paths to delinquency? J. Crim. Law Criminol. 82: 83–118.
Huizinga, D., Loeber, R., and Thornberry, T. (eds.) (1991b). Urban Delinquency and Substance Abuse, Final Report to the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, U.S. Department of Justice, Washington, DC.
Jang, S. J., and Krohn, M. D. (1995). Developmental patterns of sex differences in delinquency among African-American adolescents: A test of the sex-invariance hypothesis. J. Quant. Criminol. 11(2): 195–222.
Jensen, G. (1996). Gender variation in juvenile crime: New findings on persistent issues. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Society of Criminology, Chicago, IL.
Jensen, G., and Eve, R. (1976). Sex differences in delinquency. Criminology 13: 427–448.
Jensen, G., and Thompson, K. (1990). What's class got to do with it? A further examination of power-control theory. Am. J. Sociol. 95: 1009–1023.
Joe, K. A., and Chesney-Lind, M. (1995). Just every mother's angel: An analysis of gender and ethnic variations in youth gang membership. Gender Soc. 9: 408–431.
Knoke, D., and Bohrnstedt, G. W. (1994). Statistics for Social Data Analysis, 3rd ed., F. E. Peacock, Itasca, IL.
Laub, J. H., and Lauritsen, J. L. (1995). Violent criminal behavior over the life course: A review of the longitudinal and comparative research. In Ruback, R. B., and Weiner, N. A. (eds.), Interpersonal Violent Behaviors: Social and Cultural Aspects, Springer, New York, pp. 43–61.
Loeber, R., and Stouthamer-Loeber, M. (1986). Family factors as correlates and predictors of juvenile conduct problems and delinquency. In Tonry, M., and Morris. N. (eds.), Crime and Justice, Vol. 7, University of Chicago Press, Chicago.
Maccoby, E. E., and Jacklin, C. N. (1974). The Psychology of Sex Differences, Stanford University Press, Stanford, CA.
Mazerrolle, P. (1998). Gender, general strain, and delinquency: An empirical examination. Just. Quart. 15(1): 65–91.
Maxson, C. L., and Klein, M. (1990) Street gang violence: Twice as great, or half as great. In Huff, C. R. (ed.), Gangs in America, Sage, Newbury Park, CA.
Miller, J. (1997). Gender and victimization risk among young women in gangs. Paper presented at the National Research and Evaluation Conference, Washington, DC.
Moore, J. W. (1991). Going Down to the Barrio: Homeboys and Homegirls in Change. Temple University Press, Philadelphia, PA.
Morash, M. (1983). Gangs, groups and delinquency. Br. J. Criminol. 23: 309–331.
Morash, M., and Chesney-Lind, M. (1991). A reformulation and partial test of the power control theory of delinquency. Just. Q. 8: 347–378.
Morris, R. (1964). Female delinquency and relational problems. Soc. Forces 43: 82–89.
National Institute of Justice (1994). Violent crime. Bureau of Justice Statistics, Selected Findings, April, NCJ-147486.
Owen, B., Bloom, B., Deschenes, E. P., and Rosenbaum, J. (1998). Modeling Gender Specific Services in Juvenile Justice: Policy and Program Recommendations, Report to the State of California Office of Criminal Justice Planning, Sacramento.
Reiss, A. J., Jr., and Roth, J. A. (eds.) (1993). Understanding and Preventing Violence, National Academy Press, Washington, DC.
Rosenbaum, J. L. (1991). The female gang member: A look at the California problem. Unpublished manuscript, California State University, Fullerton.
Rowe, D. C., Vazsonyi, A. T., and Flannery, D. J. (1995). Sex differences in crime: Do means and within-sex variation have similar causes? J. Res. Crime Delinq. 32(1): 84–100.
Sampson, R., and Laub, J. (1993). Crime in the Making: Pathways and Turning Points Through Life, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA.
Saner, H., and Ellickson, P. (1996). Concurrent risk factors for adolescent violence. J. Adolesc. Health 19(2): 94–103.
Sarri, R. (1983). Gender issues in juvenile justice. Crime Delinq. 29: 381–397.
Sears, R., Maccoby, E., and Levin, H. (1957). Patterns of Child Rearing, Stanford University Press, Stanford, CA.
Shelden, R. G., Snodgrass, T., and Snodgrass, P. (1993). Comparing gang and nongang offenders: Some tentative findings. Gang J. 1: 73–85.
Singer, S. I., and Levine, M. (1988). Power-control theory, gender and delinquency: A partial replication with additional evidence on the effect of peers. Criminology 26: 627–647.
Smith, D. A., and Paternoster, R. (1987). The gender gap in theories of deviance: Issues and evidence. J. Res. Crime Delinq. 24(2): 140–172.
Smith, T. E., Perie, M., Alsalem, N., Mahoney, R., Bae, Y., and Young, B. A. (1995). The Condition of Education 1995. Department of Education, Washington, DC.
Sokol-Katz, J., Dunhan, R., and Zimmerman, R. (1997). Family structure vs parental attachment in controlling adolescent deviant behavior: A social control model. Adolescence 32(125): 199–215.
Sommers, I., and Baskin, D. R. (1994). Factors related to female adolescent initiation into violent street crime. Youth Soc. 25: 468–489.
Spergel, I. A. (1995). The Youth Gang Problem, Oxford University Press, New York.
Steffensmeier, D. (1995). Trends in female crime: It's still a man's world. In Price, B., and Sokoloff, N. (eds.), The Criminal Justice System and Women, 2nd ed., McGraw-Hill, New York, pp. 89–104.
Thornberry, T. (1998). Membership in youth gangs and involvement in serious and violent offending. In Loeber, R., and Farrington, D. P. (eds.), Serious & Violent Juvenile Offenders: Risk Factors and Successful Interventions. Sage, Thousand Oaks, CA, pp. 147–166.
Thornberry, T., Krohn, M., Lizotte, A., and Chard-Wierschem, D. (1993). The role of juvenile gangs in facilitating delinquent behavior. J. Res. Crime Delinq. 30(1): 55–87.
Thornberry, T., Lizotte, A., Krohn, M., Farnworth, M., and Jang, S. (1994). Delinquent peers, beliefs and delinquent behavior: A longitudinal test of interactional theory. Criminology 32(1): 47–84.
Thrasher, F. M. (1927). The Gang, University of Chicago Press, Chicago.
Tracy, P., and Piper, E. S. (1982). Gang membership and violent offending: Preliminary results from the 1958 Cohort Study. Paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Society of Criminology.
Triplett, R., and Meyers, L. B. (1995). Evaluating contextual patterns of delinquency: Genderbased differences. Just. Q. 12(1): 59–84.
Vigil, J. D. (1988). Barrio Gangs: Street Life and Identity in Southern California, University of Texas Press, Austin.
Warr, M. (1996). Organization and instigation in delinquent groups. Criminology 34: 11–37.
Webster, D. W., Gainer, P. S., and Champion, H. R. (1993). Weapon carrying among innercity junior high-school students: Defensive behavior vs. aggressive delinquency. Am. J. Public Health 83: 1604–1608.
Weis, J., and Hawkins, J. D. (1981). Preventing Delinquency: The Social Development Approach, U.S. Government Printing Office, Washington, DC.
Wilson, J. J., and Howell, J. C. (1994). Serious and violent juvenile crime: A comprehensive strategy. Juvenile Family Court J. 45: 3–14.
Winfree, L. T., Fuller, K., Backstrom, T., and Mays, G. L. (1992). The definition and measurement of ''gang status'': Policy implication for juvenile justice. Juvenile Family Court J. 43: 29–37.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Deschenes, E.P., Esbensen, FA. Violence and Gangs: Gender Differences in Perceptions and Behavior. Journal of Quantitative Criminology 15, 63–96 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1007552105190
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1007552105190