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Rethinking Gottfredson and Hirschi's General Theory of Crime: A Behavioral Genetic Approach

Year: 2009
Type: article
Abstract: Gottfredson and Hirschi's (1990) general theory of crime has received considerable attention over the years.At the heart of their theory is the concept of low self-control, which has emerged as a strong predictor of antisocial and delinquent behaviors.The primary purpose of this dissertation is to expand criminology's current understanding of low self-control and its relationship with delinquent behaviors by using a behavioral genetic approach.Using the twin subsample of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health), several genetic analyses are conducted to examine the genetic and environmental contributions to low self-control and its relationship with delinquency.The results from the best fitting models Wright, Dr. Francis T. Cullen, Dr. Michael L. Benson, and Dr. Kevin M. Beaver.First and foremost, I would like to thank my advisor and mentor, Dr. Wright.From day one, you have been at the center of my experience here at UC.I consider myself extremely lucky and fortunate to have met you so early on in my academic career.You have spent countless hours teaching me the process of publishing, how to be a better teacher, as well as the importance of being involved in departmental and university activities.I appreciate all of the time, energy, and effort that you have dedicated to teaching and showing me how to be a responsible scholar.Thank you for all of the opportunities that you have given me in the past five years and for believing that I could succeed.Throughout the years, you pushed me to better myself and you never gave up on me, even when I gave you many reasons to.There are no words to express how grateful I am that you are in my life.Dr. Cullen, I am forever indebted to you for all of the advice and support that you have provided me throughout the years.You have always made me feel like I could come to you for anything and I appreciate your commitment to my academic growth.I have tremendous respect for you both as a scholar and as a person and I consider myself privileged to be a part of your academic lineage (Merton ĺ &ORZDUG ĺ &XOOHQ ĺ :ULJKW ĺ %RLVYHUW Dr. Benson, thank you for being a part of this dissertation process with me.The final product was greatly improved by your thought-provoking and insightful comments.I have always admired your ability to convey complex ideas in such a way that anyone can understand.This is one of your many skills that I hope to one day master.Dr. Beaver, your dedication to the field and your passion to advance biosocial criminology is truly inspiring.Thank you for all of the guidance and support during my time here at UC.I would also like to thank the Division of Criminal Justice at the University of Cincinnati for financially supporting me during the past five years.Finally, I would like to extend a very special thank you to Dr. Valerie Knopik from Brown University.Your willingness to help out a complete stranger was overwhelming.Thank you for reviewing all of my Mx scripts, outputs, and interpretations of the results in such an exceptionally timely manner.I could not have completed this dissertation without your help and I look forward to continued collaboration with you in the near future.vi I would like to dedicate this dissertation to my family and friends who have supported me every step of the way.To my parents, Norm and Bernice, thank you foremost for your unwavering love and support.Mom, you are my biggest cheerleader!Thank you for reading every word of my dissertation and for all of the times that you came to visit me in order to help me stay on track.I believe that you should get an honorary degree for all of your help during my educational studies.Dad, thank you for teaching me the value of working hard and persisting through challenging times.Through you, I have learned that small sacrifices can amount to large successes.I reluctantly say that it is time to take the scissors out and cut that tie… once again.To my sister Mélise, you are one of my best friends and biggest supporters, thank you for encouraging me and inspiring me to be the best.To my brother Mike, thank you for showing me how to deal with adversity in a calm and effective way.I have not mastered this skill yet but I will keep working on it.To Shaun, this dissertation would not be in its current form without your helpful feedback and edits.Thank you for always supporting me.To mémère and pépère, who never got the chance to see my goals realized, thank you for giving me the confidence that I could succeed at anything in life.Mémère, watching you get your University degree at the age of 69 was truly inspirational.Pépère, I believe that your candy apples really did make me smarter!À grand-maman et grand-papa, merci beaucoup pour m'avoir toujours encouragé de poursuivre mon éducation malgré le fait que j'ai dû le faire dans un autre pays loin de vous.I promise there were no Z's on my report card and that my next degree will be from L'Université de Milan.To my girlfriends in Canada, Melanie, Terra, Katie, and Andréa, I consider myself lucky to have such strong and inspirational woman in my life, thank you for always believing in me.I would also like to thank my fellow graduate students, especially Rebecca, Khadija, Jamie, Kate, Brooke, and Ryan for tirelessly listening to me and giving me the strength to continue when I needed it.It has been quite the adventure going through this process together and I can't imagine my experience here without all of you.We have been there for each other through all of the hurdles and have celebrated every accomplishment together.I am leaving here with wonderful memories and friendships that will last a lifetime.As I look back on this journey, I realize that every experience, good and bad, has shaped me into the person I am today, a person who is ready and eager to start this new chapter in her life.
Language: English
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2262910288
FWCI: 3.248
Cites: 347
Cited by: 5
Related to: 10