DIMENSIONS OF ANTISOCIAL-BEHAVIOR IN JUVENILE-DELINQUENCY - A STUDY OF PERSONALITY-VARIABLES

The discrepancy among operational definitions of delinquency is one of the main causes of the fragmentation in this area of research. In thi s paper, we defend the need to analyse juvenile delinquency as a multi dimensional construct rather than as a dichotomous variable. This appr oach allows one to identify homogeneous classes of behaviour, to take into account the frequency and seriousness of such behaviour, and to i nvestigate the variables related to each separate class. In this work, the relationship of certain personality variables (sensation seeking, impulsivity, empathy and self-esteem) to various types of self-report ed delinquent activity was investigated in two samples of male adolesc ents, one composed of institutionalized juvenile delinquents and the o ther drawn from the general population. Our results confirm the releva nce of the personality variables considered and support their differen tial association with offence groups.