Social Control Theory and School Misbehavior: Examining the Role of Race and Ethnicity

• Author: Anthony A. Peguero,Ann Marie Popp,Dixie J. Koo,Zahra Shekarkhar,T. Lorraine Latimore
• DOI: 10.1177/1541204010389197
• Published date: 01 July 2011
• Date: 01 July 2011
• Subject Matter: Articles

Youth Violence and Juvenile Justice
9(3) 259-275
Social Control Theory and
ª The Author(s) 2011
Reprints and permission:
School Misbehavior: Examining
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DOI: 10.1177/1541204010389197
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the Role of Race and Ethnicity
Anthony A. Peguero1, Ann Marie Popp2, T. Lorraine Latimore3,
Zahra Shekarkhar4, and Dixie J. Koo5
Abstract
Social control theory has been successfully utilized to investigate and explain school misbehavior;
however, only a few studies have focused on the complex role of race and ethnicity. With a
diverse and growing racial and ethnic minority population, exploring whether race and ethnicity
moderate the relationship between social control theory and school misbehavior is warranted.
This study utilizes data from the Educational Longitudinal Study of 2002, a nationally
representative sample of 10th-grade students, to examine whether the relationship between social
control theory and school misbehavior varies by race and ethnicity. The findings suggest that the
relationship between elements of the social bond and school misbehavior varies across racial and
ethnic groups. This study discusses the importance of focusing on race and ethnicity in criminological
research as the United States becomes increasingly diverse.
Keywords
deviance, race and ethnicity, school social bonds, school violence, social control
Introduction
Because schools are institutions of socialization that influence youth development and educational
progress, the misbehavior that occurs within schools has received a great deal of political, educa-
tional, and social attention (Elliott, Hamburg, & Williams, 1998; Gottfredson, 2001; Lawrence,
2007). School misbehavior undermines the educational process for all students, not just the offenders
and victims; in addition, the associated collateral damage (e.g., dropping out, mental health disorder,
and adult criminality) from school misbehavior has long-lasting consequences for the offenders and
their victims (Finkelhor, 2008; Gottfredson, 2001). Due to the negative outcomes associated with
1Department of Sociology and Gerontology, Miami University, Oxford, OH, USA
2Department of Sociology, Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
3Department of Sociology, East Central University, Ada, OK, USA
4Department of Sociology and Criminology & Law, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
5Department of Criminal Justice, California State University, Fullerton, CA, USA
Corresponding Author:
Anthony Peguero, Department of Sociology and Gerontology, Miami University, 375 Upham Hall, Oxford, OH 45056, USA
Email: pegueraa@muohio.edu

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Youth Violence and Juvenile Justice 9(3)
school misbehavior, a number of theoretical approaches have been utilized to explore and understand
school misbehavior. One of the prominent theoretical approaches that has been utilized to explain
school misbehavior and received significant empirical support is social control theory (Booth, Farrell,
& Varano, 2008; Gottfredson, 2001; Jenkins, 1997; Payne, 2008; Stewart, 2003; Welsh, Greene, &
Jenkins, 1999; Wilcox & Clayton, 2001). Findings suggest that weak student bonds (i.e., attachment,
commitment, involvement, and belief) to school are associated with an increase in school misbehavior
(Booth et al., 2008; Jenkins, 1997; Payne, 2008; Stewart, 2003). Thus, social control theory is an
appropriate approach to understanding school misbehavior.
While social control theory has been utilized extensively to understand school misbehavior, the
role of race and ethnicity had not been the focus of the research. Some criminologists have argued
that race and ethnicity are at the periphery of most criminological research and not at the center of
the research where they belong (Hawkins, 1995, 2003; Peterson, Krivo, & Hagan, 2006). In general,
research only reports the racial and ethnic differences in the participation of school misbehavior.
Few studies have explored the relationship between social control theory and school misbehavior,
specifically for racial and ethnic minorities (Cernkovich & Giordano, 1992; Jang, 2002). This
research is needed since it is projected that racial and ethnic minorities will represent more than half
of the total youth population for the first time in U.S. history in the next 30 years (U.S. Census,
2008). With a rapidly growing racial and ethnic minority population in the United States, researchers
should explore whether criminological theories adequately explain criminal behavior across the dif-
ferent racial and ethnic groups (Hawkins, 1995, 2003; Peterson et al., 2006).
The purpose of the current study is to explore whether race and ethnicity mediate the relationship
between social control theory and school misbehavior. Although concern about misbehavior within
schools has generated considerable research, a limited number of studies have focused on whether
social control theory can account for the patterns of misbehavior across the different racial and eth-
nic groups. This study begins with an overview of how social control is theoretically linked to youth
deviance and misbehavior. The next section summarizes the research literature on social control
theory and school misbehavior with an emphasis on the findings and limitations of this literature.
The potential role of race and ethnicity is considered in both of these sections. Data for the present
study are drawn from the Educational Longitudinal Study of 2002 (ELS:2002), a U.S. represented
stratified sample of 11,320 tenth grade public school students. Hierarchical Linear Modeling (HLM)
analysis is employed to investigate the relationship between social control theory and school misbe-
havior for Black/African American, Latino/Latina American, Asian American, and White American
youth. Finally, the research findings are presented and their implications are discussed.
Social Control
Hirschi’s (1969) social control theory is based on bridging the link between individuals and conven-
tional social institutions in order to explain delinquent behavior. Social control theory postulates that
individuals are inherently inclined to be deviant (Hirschi, 1969). Thus, it is the mechanisms that inhi-
bit individuals from yielding to their deviant inclinations that warrant scrutiny. Hirschi argued that a
strong social bond to social institutions, such as schools, promotes conformity to conventional
norms. Individuals who possess weak or broken social bonds to conventional institutions are more
likely to engage in deviant behavior (Hirschi, 1969). According to Hirschi, an individual’s bond to
social institutions consists of four elements: emotional attachment to parents, peers, and conven-
tional institutions, such as school and work; commitment to long-term educational, occupational,
or other conventional goals; involvement in conventional activities such as work, homework,
hobbies; and belief in the moral validity of the law. While these four elements of social control can
independently inhibit delinquency, the combined effect of the four elements of the social bond on
delinquency is greater than the sum of their individual effects. As Hirschi suggested, ‘‘the more

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Peguero et al.
261
closely a person is tied to conventional society in any of these ways, the more closely [s/]he is likely
to be tied in the other ways’’ (Hirschi, 1969, p. 27).
Hirschi (1969) does not explicitly address the issue of race and ethnicity because he argues social
control theory is invariant across social characteristics including race and ethnicity. According to
Hirschi, social control theory should account for patterns of criminal offending by focusing on the
strength of social bonds and ties to conventional society. Research, however, has consistently shown
that racial and ethnic minorities are more likely to reside in communities that are characterized by
poverty, unemployment, family disruption, crime and violence, social isolation, and discrimination
(Anderson, 1999; Hagan & Peterson, 1995; Krivo & Peterson, 1996; Morenoff, Sampson, &
Raudenbush, 2001; Peterson et al., 2006; Sampson & Raudenbush, 1999; Stewart, Simons, & Con-
ger, 2002). These aforementioned studies also indicate that the development of social ties to conven-
tional institutions and belief in conventional values become problematic for residents living in such
communities (Anderson, 1999; Hagan & Peterson, 1995; Krivo & Peterson, 1996; Morenoff et al.,
2001; Peterson et al., 2006; Sampson & Raudenbush, 1999; Stewart et al., 2002). Therefore, drawing
upon this body of work and using the logic of social control theory, these social conditions impede
the formation of strong attachment, commitment, involvement, and belief in conventional institu-
tions. Consequently, racial and ethnic minorities are more likely to have weaker social bonds to
conventional others and institutions and more likely to engage criminal behavior.
Only a few studies have attempted to assess empirically whether prominent criminological
theories can explain racial and ethnic differences in offending or the processes specified by these
theories are the same across racial and ethnic groups. According to social control theory, racial and
ethnic differences in delinquency are due to the strength of social bonds to conventional society and
institutions. Although Hirschi (1969) does not explicitly outline the factors affecting the strength of
the social bond, it can be argued that single-parent families, lower socioeconomic status (SES) and
achievement, living in high-crime neighborhoods,...