Prevention Science (June, 2007)
This study of more than 7,800 high school sophomores from seven states found that boys reported higher levels of risk and lower levels of protection than girls on 18 out of 22 risk and protective factors. Additionally, boys were twice as likely to engage in seven of the eight serious delinquent behaviors that were measured.
Protective factors included the teens’ attachment to their parents, rewards for good behavior in school and having social skills. Risk factors included family conflict, low commitment to school, peer drug use and sensation seeking. Being drunk or high at school was the most common self-reported offense. The overwhelming majority of teenagers said they did not engage in delinquent acts. Free abstract. (212) 460-1500, http://www.springerlink.com/content/gm6g04x17206q2pu/?p=2901fc19195945c184a56b4f31e30301π=2.
