Estrella Romero

The Self-Control Construct in the General Theory of Crime: An Investigation in Terms of Personality Psychology

The general theory of crime has been one of the most influential contributions to criminology of the last decade. Since its formulation, a number of self-report scales have been developed for assessing self-control, the central construct of the theory. The present study collected data from a sample of Spanish university students and another of Spanish adolescents, with the aim of investigating (1) the components of self-control evaluated by the different scales, (2) relationships between the components of self-control and antisocial behavior, (3) the relationship between the components of self-control and the factors and facets of the Five-Factor Model of personality. Our results indicate that self-control, as evaluated by self-report scales, comprises five components, which show differing relationships with antisocial behavior and personality factors. At the most fundamental level, self-control appears to correspond to constructs that are well known in personality psychology, and indeed insights drawn from this field may prove useful for understanding the nature and origins of self-control.

Personality and antisocial behaviour: study of temperamental dimensions

Abstract Personality variables have been considered as major determinants of delinquent behaviour in various theoretical models and numerous empirical studies. Particular attention has been paid to “temperament” variables, which are considered to have a biological basis. In the present study, we examined relationships between self-reported antisocial behaviour and a number of temperament variables (extraversion, neuroticism, psychoticism, impulsivity, sensation seeking) in three subject groups: 435 school-attending male adolescents, 529 school-attending female adolescents, and 95 institutionalized delinquent male adolescents. This study design, unlike that of most previous studies of this type, allowed control for the factor of institutionalization, and included a longitudinal analysis, in that questionnaires were administered to the school-attending subjects twice with a 1-year interval. The results confirm that several temperament variables, characterized by high sensitivity to reward and/or weak response to punishment signals, are closely associated with antisocial behaviour. Our findings suggest that personality variables should be included in criminological models, and taken into account in intervention programs.

Values and antisocial behavior among Spanish adolescents.

Abstract A number of studies have indicated that delinquent adolescents have characteristic value systems. However, most of these studies have adopted a “known-groups” design—that is, they have compared institutionalized delinquents and non-institutionalized adolescents, assuming those adolescents to be non-delinquent. Designs of this type do not distinguish effectively between the statistical effects of delinquency and of institutionalization. In this study, the authors investigated relationships between values and self-reported antisocial behavior in three adolescent groups: 435 school-attending boys, 529 school-attending girls, and 95 delinquent boys in juvenile rehabilitation centers or prisons. The results indicate that antisocial behavior is associated with hedonistic values and a lack of interest in conventional values and social values. These relationships cannot be explained by the institutionalization effects.

Life Aspirations, Personality Traits and Subjective Well-being in a Spanish Sample

This study examines the relationships between intrinsic/extrinsic aspirations and subjective well–being (SWB; positive affect, negative affect, satisfaction with life) in a sample of 583 Spanish adults. Firstly, the results showed that high scores for SWB are related to high scores for intrinsic aspirations and, to a lesser extent, to low scores for extrinsic aspirations; it was also found that intrinsic aspirations are mainly related to positive indicators of well–being, whereas extrinsic aspirations are mainly associated with negative indicators. Secondly, the study also enabled exploration of the links between the domains of the Five–Factor Model and aspirations; thirdly, the results showed that intrinsic/extrinsic aspirations predict SWB beyond the Five Factors. The results demonstrate the importance of studying the content of human aspirations for understanding psychological health. Copyright

Goals during adolescence and their relationship with antisocial behavior

In recent years, psychological research has emphasized the role of goals in adolescent development and, particularly, in the development of socially adapted lifestyles. Along those lines, the present study, analyzing data collected from a sample of 488 participants, explores: a) The structure of adolescent goals and their importance for young people, b) The relationship between adolescent goals and antisocial behavior and c) The role of gender in this relationship. The results show that adolescent goals are structured according to 6 factors: Social Recognition, Emancipation, Education, Physical-Athletic, Antisocial and Interpersonal-Familial. Educational and emancipative goals appear to be most important for young people. In addition, it has been found that there are significant correlations between certain types of goals and adolescent antisocial behavior, as well as significant gender differences. The data reflect the need to incorporate motivational dimensions into explanatory models of adolescent behavioral problems.

Conduct Problems in Childhood and Adolescence: Developmental Trajectories, Predictors and Outcomes in a Six-Year Follow Up

Understanding youth conduct problems requires examination from a developmental perspective, analyzing distinctive pathways across childhood and adolescence, and identifying early predictors which will lead to specific adolescent outcomes. Bearing this in mind, developmental trajectories of conduct problems were identified from a person-oriented perspective, and using data collected from three waves over a six-year period, in a sample of Spanish children aged 6–11 at the onset of the study. Conduct problems showed five distinctive trajectories which were grouped into three major pathways in further analyses: Stable low, Stable high, and Decreasing. Associations with early personality and psychopathic traits, as well as with a wide range of adolescent behavioral and psychosocial outcomes were examined, revealing the Stable high group as exhibiting the highest risk profile. These results contribute to improving our knowledge about one of the most relevant problems in youth populations, and will help in refining interventions strategies by recognizing the developmental heterogeneity of the construct.

A cross-national study of preadolescent substance use: exploring differences between youth in Spain and Arizona.

This study aims to comparatively examine drug use in Arizona and Spain, in order to know if similarities and differences in drug use patterns justify the administration in Spain of U.S. prevention intervention programs. Data were obtained from independent samples of seventh-grade students recruited from urban public schools and surveyed in 1998: 4,035 ethnically diverse Arizona students (Latinos and non-Hispanic Whites), and 2,243 Spanish-White students. Comparisons using Odds ratios and Chi-square tests allowed assessment of differences in drug use rates between preadolescents in Arizona and Spain taking into account gender. Furthermore, ethnicity differences in preadolescent drug use and in psychosocial risk factors were explored using multivariate analysis (ANOVA and logistic regression). Our results showed similar trends in drug use between Arizona and Spain students, with gateway drugs already in use by early adolescents, and with higher rates of drug use among males than among females. However, cross-national differences in marijuana/cannabis use were noteworthy: Arizona preadolescents were over 25 times more likely to report marijuana/cannabis use than preadolescents from Spain. Moreover, when ethnic differences were considered, Latinos in Arizona reported higher marijuana/cannabis use compared with non-Latino students. Drug use patterns among Latino preadolescents, as well as the relevance of some risk factors among the diverse groups, were strongly influenced by their level of acculturation. Study limitations and the implications of our findings for early drug use prevention and future research are discussed.

Interactive effects of personality and separation as acculturation style on adolescent antisocial behaviour

The primary aim of this study was to assess the interaction between personality and acculturation variables in predicting antisocial behaviour among adolescent immigrants living in Spain. Previous studies have shown that the acculturation style referred to as separation (rejection of the host countrys culture, and a strong desire to preserve the culture of the country of origin) was strongly related to antisocial behaviour among immigrants. A further aim of this study was to examine if the relationship between separation and antisocial behaviour was moderated by personality variables, in particular impulsivity, sensation-seeking, and personal competence. Self-reported data of a sample of 750 adolescent immigrants living in Galicias and Madrids regions (Spain) were gathered using previously validated scales. The results revealed that both separation and personality variables were significantly related to antisocial behaviour. Moreover, hierarchical regression analysis with the interaction terms entered found significant moderating effects i.e., the relationship between separation and antisocial behaviour was significantly amplified when impulsivity or sensation-seeking were high. The results underscore the need to examine the effects of personality, acculturation, and the interaction between both on antisocial behaviour among adolescent immigrants.

La relación entre autoestima y consumo de drogas en los adolescentes: un análisis longitudinal

ResumenLa relacion entre la variable autoestima y el consumo de drogas constituye un tema particularmente controvertido dentro del campo de estudio de la desviacion social. Aunque determinados modelos teoricos y multiples programas de intervencion hacen hincapie en la importancia que la autoestima adquiere en el desarrollo del consumo de drogas, la evidencia empirica tiende a mostrar que la relacion entre ambas variables es una asociacion mas bien debil e inconsistente. En este estudio se intenta superar, en parte, las debilidades de este campo de conocimiento incorporando en un analisis longitudinal la medicion de diferentes dimensiones de la autoestima. Los datos fueron recabados en una muestra de 1549 jovenes (719 varones y 830 mujeres) con los que se contacto en dos ocasiones distanciadas por un lapso de tiempo de un ano. Los resultados ponen de relieve la necesidad de tener en cuenta la naturaleza multidimensional de la autoestima a la hora de examinar la relacion entre ambos constructos; asimismo, n...

Assessing psychopathy in young people: the validity of the Psychopathic Checklist: Youth Version for a sample of Spanish offenders

In this study, we assessed the validity of the Psychopathic Checklist: Youth Version (PCL:YV) in a Spanish sample of juvenile court-involved youths. Although recent Anglo-Saxon literature on the topic supports the usefulness of psychopathic traits in adolescent offenders for predicting recidivism and future violence, little is still known about their predictive ability for other cultures. The results of this study suggest that the PCL:YV possesses adequate concurrent criterion-related validity (by using self-reported version of Antisocial Process Screening Device) and retrospective validity (particularly as regards the antisocial, but also the affective–interpersonal domain). Specifically, retrospective validity was confirmed by positive correlations with history of truancy at school, poor parenting, parental delinquency, self-reported antisocial behaviour and illicit behaviour patterns including violent offences recorded in official files; however, careful analysis revealed that the Lifestyle and Antisocial factors are the main dimensions related to past offences, whether violent or otherwise. In conclusion, the PCL:YV is a convenient instrument for assessing psychopathy, and, hence, the risk of criminality, in youths.