THE STUDY SUBJECTS WERE 160 RANDOMLY SELECTED MALE INMATES. HALF HAD BEEN CONVICTED OF SERIOUS CRIME (E.G., MURDER, AGGRAVATED ASSAULT, RAPE, KIDNAPPING, ARMED ROBBERY), HALF OF MINOR CRIMES OR MISDEMEANORS. THE INMATES COMPLETED PUNJABI-TRANSLATED VERSIONS OF BELL'S ADJUSTMENT INVENTORY AND EYSENCK'S PSYCHOTICISM-EXTROVERSION-NEUROTICISM (PEN) TEST. A LITERATURE REVIEW SUGGESTED THE HYPOTHESIS THAT MINOR OFFENDERS WOULD COME FROM BETTER HOMES, HAVE BETTER HEALTH, AND BE BETTER ADJUSTED OCCUPATIONALLY, SOCIALLY, AND EMOTIONALLY THAN SERIOUS OFFENDERS, WHO WOULD SCORE HIGH ON ALL DIMENSIONS OF THE PEN TEST. THE RESULTS PARTIALLY SUPPORT THE HYPOTHESIS. SERIOUS OFFENDERS WERE SIGNIFICANTLY MORE PSYCHOTIC AND NEUROTIC THAN MINOR OFFENDERS, WERE MORE EXTROVERTED (ALTHOUGH NOT SIGNIFICANTLY SO), HAD BETTER HEALTH, AND WERE BETTER ADJUSTED OCCUPATIONALLY. MINOR OFFENDERS CAME FROM BETTER HOMES AND WERE BETTER ADJUSTED EMOTIONALLY AND SOCIALLY. THE RESULTS ARE DISCUSSED IN LIGHT OF FINDINGS FROM OTHER SIMILAR STUDIES. A LIST OF REFERENCES AND SUPPORTING DATA ARE INCLUDED. (LKM)