Reconsidering the relationship between SES and delinquency: Causation but not correlation

Many theories of crime have linked low levels of socioeconomic status (SES) to high levels of delinquency. However, empirical studies have consistentl y found weak or nonexistent correlations between individuals' SES and their self-reported delinquent behavior. Drawing upon recent theoretical innovat ions (Hagan et at, 1985; Jensen, 1993; Tittle, 1995), we propose that this apparent contradiction between theory and data may be reconciled by recogni zing that SES has both a negative and a positive indirect effect upon delin quency that, in tandem, results in little overall correlation between the t wo. We tested this proposal with longitudinal data from the Dunedin Multidi sciplinary Health and Development Study. We used measures of parental SES r ecorded at study members' birth through age 15 social-psychological charact eristics at age 18, and self-reported delinquency at ages 18 and ZI. We fou nd that low SES promoted delinquency by increasing individuals' alienation, financial strain, and aggression and by decreasing educational and occupat ional aspirations, whereas high SES promoted individuals' delinquency by in creasing risk taking and social power and by decreasing conventional values . These findings suggest a reconciliation between theory and data, and they underscore the conceptual importance of elucidating the full range of caus al linkages between SES and delinquency.