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Predicting Effects of the Self and Contextual Factors on Violence: A Comparison between School Students and Youth Offenders in Macau

Author

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  • T. Wing Lo

    (Department of Applied Social Sciences, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China)

  • Christopher H. K. Cheng

    (Department of Applied Social Sciences, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China)

Abstract

This study was designed to explore the self and contextual factors for violence in two samples of school students and youth offenders in Macau. There were 3085 participants who were between 12 and 20 years old; 48.3% of them were male and 51.7% female. Findings revealed that youth offenders exhibited more violence than school students. For the self factors, while lower self-esteem and higher self-efficacy of school students were associated with more violent behavior, these two variables had no significant effects for youth offenders. For the contextual factors, family conflict was the strongest predictor of violence, and school commitment/attachment was the weakest predictor for both samples. For youth offenders, family conflict had the largest direct effect, followed by susceptibility to negative peer influence and influence of the Triad gangs, while school commitment/attachment had a significant though mild direct effect. For school students, family conflict mediated the effect of self-esteem and self-efficacy on violence. While Triad gangs’ influence was the second strongest predictor of violence, being exposed to Triad gangs’ influence also mediated the effect of self-esteem and self-efficacy on violence. It is recommended that youth outreach services with a focus on family support and gang detachment for at-risk youth be strengthened.

Suggested Citation

  • T. Wing Lo & Christopher H. K. Cheng, 2018. "Predicting Effects of the Self and Contextual Factors on Violence: A Comparison between School Students and Youth Offenders in Macau," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 15(2), pages 1-17, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:15:y:2018:i:2:p:258-:d:130099
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Hoeben, Evelien M. & Meldrum, Ryan C. & Walker, D'Andre & Young, Jacob T.N., 2016. "The role of peer delinquency and unstructured socializing in explaining delinquency and substance use: A state-of-the-art review," Journal of Criminal Justice, Elsevier, vol. 47(C), pages 108-122.
    2. Ozkan, Turgut, 2016. "Reoffending among serious juvenile offenders: A developmental perspective," Journal of Criminal Justice, Elsevier, vol. 46(C), pages 18-31.
    3. Dong, Beidi & Krohn, Marvin D., 2016. "Escape from violence: What reduces the enduring consequences of adolescent gang affiliation?," Journal of Criminal Justice, Elsevier, vol. 47(C), pages 41-50.
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    Cited by:

    1. T. Wing Lo & John W. L. Tse & Christopher H. K. Cheng & Gloria H. Y. Chan, 2019. "The Association between Substance Abuse and Sexual Misconduct among Macau Youths," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(9), pages 1-17, May.
    2. Víctor Arufe-Giráldez & Félix Zurita-Ortega & Rosario Padial-Ruz & Manuel Castro-Sánchez, 2019. "Association between Level of Empathy, Attitude towards Physical Education and Victimization in Adolescents: A Multi-Group Structural Equation Analysis," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 16(13), pages 1-13, July.

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