Steinberg argues that parenting styles or circumstances -- weak parent-child bond, lack of vigilance, and permissiveness -- are directly related to the age of onset of delinquency. In his view, certain precise parental behavioral and attitudinal stimuli produce a precise and inevitable response in their children's behavior. This mechanistic view of behavioral causes fails to account for the many variables in individuals and situations that contribute to individual behavioral patterns. Steinberg's mechanistic view of behavior yields a mechnistic view of intervention. He proposes parent education to change negative parental behaviors and an extended school day and year to reduce the amount of unsupervised time for children with two working parents. It is doubtful that cognitive parent education can change embedded detrimental parental behaviors or that the extended institutionalization of children will produce improved child behavior. Social policy based on simplistic, mechanistic views of human behavior is not likely to achieve its intent. 2 references.