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Male Street Youths' Conflict: The Role of Background, Subcultural, and Situational Factors

NCJ Number
192454
Journal
Justice Quarterly Volume: 18 Issue: 4 Dated: December 2001 Pages: 759-789
Author(s)
Stephen W. Baron; Leslie W. Kennedy; David R. Forde
Date Published
December 2001
Length
31 pages
Annotation
Using a sample of 125 homeless male street youths, this study examined the formation of values that supported violence and how these attitudes influenced violence under different situational conditions.
Abstract
All subjects were under age 24; had finished school or dropped out; and spent at least 3 hours a day, 3 days a week hanging around on the street or in a mall. Interviews were conducted in a midwestern Canadian city from May through July 1995. Interviews averaged 45 to 50 minutes and followed a structured schedule of primarily forced-choice items. Respondents were asked about their family backgrounds, school histories, attitudes toward violence, participation in deviant activities, and experiences with interpersonal conflict. The study used a modification of Kennedy and Forde's (1996) factorial survey to examine the legitimation of aggression; the scenarios used tapped into workplace, street, and leisure domains. Respondents were given varying circumstances and two intensities of conflict. Findings show that abusive backgrounds, anger, violent peers, and the successful use of violence as a conflict management strategy are important in understanding the acquisition of values that support violence. These subcultural values in turn make street youths more sensitive to harm in dispute situations, making them more likely to demand reparation for harm and to persevere and use force to settle disputes. These youths are more likely to become immersed in disputes in which conflict is intense and that involve males. They are more likely to escalate conflict in public places. The authors discuss these findings in terms of experiences and expectations that these youths bring to social interactions. 3 tables and 92 references