Class, gender, and arrest: An intergenerational analysis of workplace power and control

Power-control theory posits that parental workplace positions affect adoles cent law violation. To date, however, no test of the theory has directly me asured occupational power and control. This paper tests whether parental an d adolescent workplace freedom and control affect criminal behavior and arr est as the theory predicts, using data from a prospective longitudinal surv ey of 1,000 adolescents and their parents. The results suggest sex differen tials in the effects of maternal authority position and parental freedom an d control. In particular, daughters whose mothers hold authority positions are move likely to be arrested than are daughters whose mothers do not hold such positions. The effects of adolescent employment also differ by sex, w ith perceived workplace power and control reducing rates of arrest among fe males but increasing them among males.