THE ACW MODEL HOLDS THAT YOUTH BEGIN EXPERIENCING LEGAL ENTANGLEMENTS IN THE EARLY TEENS, PEAK IN THE MID-TEENS, AND START 'MATURING OUT' IN THE LATE TEENS. HOWEVER, RESPONSES TO A SELF-REPORT ANONYMOUS QUESTIONNAIRE ADMINISTERED TO STUDENTS ATTENDING FOUR HIGH SCHOOLS IN FOUR SMALL COMMUNITIES APPEAR TO CONTRADICT THE MODEL. THE QUESTIONNAIRE PROBED RESPONDENTS' INVOLVEMENTS IN SHOPLIFTING. PATTERNS SHOWED A CONSIDERABLE NUMBER OF YOUTH WERE SHOPLIFTING AT ALL AGES; MALES WERE SLIGHTLY MORE ACTIVE THAN FEMALES, AND MOST YOUTH SHOPLIFT INFREQUENTLY. MOST IMPORTANT, THE 'UNDER 10' CATEGORY CONTAINED THE MOST INDIVIDUALS SHOPLIFTING, AND AS AGE INCREASED THE NUMBER OF YOUTH REPORTING SHOPLIFTING STEADILY DECREASED. THIS PATTERN HELD FOR BOTH MALES AND FEMALES. FURTHER ANALYSES INDICATED THAT AS THE YOUTH MOVED THROUGH THEIR HIGH SCHOOL CAREERS THEIR SHOPLIFTINGDECREASED. THESE CONCLUSIONS RUN COUNTER TO THE ACW MODEL AND SUGGEST INSTEAD A DECLINING ADOLESCENT CRIME (DAC) MODEL. THE CONTRAST BETWEEN THE TWO MODELS MAY BE ACCOUNTED FOR BY THE DAC STUDY'S FOCUS ON SHOPLIFTING AND A SELF-REPORT METHODOLOGY (THE ACW MODEL USED OFFICIAL STATISTICS WHICH ARE USEFUL BUT OF LIMITED VALIDITY AND THE ACW MODEL FOCUSED ON ALL OFFENSES, NOT JUST SHOPLIFTING). ADDITIONALLY, A DIFFERENTIAL DEFINITION AND APPLICATION OF LEGAL CODES MAY HAVE RESULTED IN AN EXAGGERATED PERCEPTION OF ADOLESCENT DEVIANCE. MORE RESEARCH TRACING EARLY DEVIANT CAREER DEVELOPMENT MUST BE DONE TO ASCERTAIN HOW MUCH VALIDITY AND WHICH KINDS OF DEVIANCE FIT THE ACW MODEL OR THE DAC MODEL. IF THIS RESEARCH SUPPORTS THE DAC MODEL, THEN SOME MODIFICATIONS IN DEVIANCE THEORETICAL WORK ARE IN ORDER; E.G., A CLOSER LOOK AT THE FAMILY-CHILDHOOD-DEVIANCE RELATIONSHIPS MAY BE CALLED FOR. LIKEWISE, MORE CONCERN WITH HOW INDIVIDUALS BECOME NONDEVIANT MAY BE AS IMPORTANT AN ISSUE AS HOW ONE BECOMES DEVIANT. REFERENCES ARE INCLUDED.