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Taylor Ameri1, Kyle A Burgason1, Matt DeLisi1

  • 1Iowa State University, United States.

International Journal of Law and Psychiatry
|May 25, 2019
PubMed
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Legal cynicism predicts crime, but this study suggests it stems from underlying antisocial traits. Controlling for temperament and psychopathy in incarcerated youth rendered the link between legal cynicism and delinquency non-significant.

Area of Science:

  • Criminology
  • Psychology
  • Sociology

Background:

  • Legal cynicism, initially viewed as anomie, may function as a rationalization for criminal behavior.
  • It is hypothesized that legal cynicism is a secondary manifestation of individual-level factors influencing criminal propensity.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate whether legal cynicism is a consequence of other individual-level constructs, specifically temperament traits and psychopathic features.
  • To examine the relationship between legal cynicism and criminal behavior (delinquency and arrests) in incarcerated youth, while controlling for confounding variables.

Main Methods:

  • A sample of 253 residentially incarcerated youth was analyzed.
  • Negative binomial regression models were employed to assess the associations between legal cynicism, delinquency, arrests, sociodemographic characteristics, temperament traits, and psychopathic personality features.
Keywords:
DelinquencyJuvenile offendersLegal cynicismPsychopathyTemperament

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Main Results:

  • Legal cynicism was significantly associated with self-reported delinquency and violence, but not total arrests.
  • These associations remained significant after controlling for sociodemographic factors.
  • However, including measures of temperament and psychopathy attenuated or eliminated the significant associations between legal cynicism and delinquency/violence.

Conclusions:

  • The findings support the view that legal cynicism is not an independent predictor of crime but rather a product of underlying antisocial traits and criminal propensity.
  • Legal cynicism appears to be a consequence of, rather than a cause of, criminal behavior in this population.