THE ATTITUDES AND ACTIONS OF OTHERS - TUTELAGE AND SUTHERLANDS THEORYOF DIFFERENTIAL ASSOCIATION

Contemporary studies of Sutherland's differential association theory a rgue that people learn about crime predominantly or exclusively throug h exposure to attitudes and motives that legitimize such behaviours. I suggest that Sutherland's writings demonstrate an equal concern with more direct exposure to crime; that is, with tutelage in criminal meth ods. I test this interpretation with models of drug selling and theft among a sample of homeless youths. In both cases, models that include deviant associations, attitudes, and desires improve with the addition of a measure of tutelage. Disregarding the role of tutelage may, ther efore, mis-specify the differential association process and encourage mis-interpretations of findings that correspond with Sutherland's theo ry.