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Identity, Peer Resistance, and Antisocial Influence: Modeling Direct and Indirect Causes of Desistance

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Abstract

Purpose

Among identity theories of desistance, there is a discrepancy over the causal ordering of subjective and social factors that lead to desistance. Adding to a limited body of empirical research on the developmental process of desistance early in the life course, the present study examines the interrelationships between the subjective mechanisms of identity and resistance to peer influence and the social mechanism of peer antisocial influence and their direct and indirect effects on desistance.

Methods

Employing 11 waves of data from the Pathways to Desistance Study, the current study uses a random intercepts cross-lagged panel model (RI-CLPM) to account for between-person differences and isolate within-person interrelationships between identity, resistance to peer influence, peer antisocial influence, and delinquency.

Results

Accounting for between-individual differences, results indicate significant stability in all variables, and significant same-wave associations between all variables. Reciprocal cross-lagged effects were found between resistance to peer influence and identity, and between identity and delinquency. Additionally, peer antisocial influence exhibited a significant cross-lagged effect on delinquency, and delinquency exhibited a significant cross-lagged effect on resistance to peer influence. A significant indirect pathway was detected from resistance to peer influence to delinquency through identity.

Conclusions

Findings support prior research and programmatic efforts to promote positive self-identity formation and reduce peer antisocial influence to directly encourage desistance and to promote problem-solving skills in peer contexts to indirectly foster desistance. As social and subjective factors are associated within wave, but not over time, future tests may need to examine desistance processes and the links between subjective and social factors over shorter time frames.

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Notes

  1. For violent offenders, the average peak age is slightly older, at 18 years for males and 20 years for females. Non-violent offenders tend to peak at a younger age—17 years for males and 16 years for females [16].

  2. It is important to note that because the quantitative literature on identity’s role in desistance is rather new, each study outlined in this section created its own measures of identity. As research in this area persists, it is possible that scales may become validated.

  3. The dichotomized “family man” variable represents individuals who stated they were good providers, good fathers, and/or good partners [35].

  4. Crank [12] used data derived from the RAND survey (see [26]). Participants were asked, “During the street months on the calendar, which of the following best describe the way you thought of yourself? Answer yes or no for each one” (p. 7). Addict identity was derived from a single item: drug user/addict. Violent identity consisted of two items: fighter/street fighter and violent person. Thief identity was described by two items: thief and burglar. Lastly, straight identity was created from one item: straight/non-criminal.

  5. Paternoster et al. [51] surveyed incarcerated individuals before and after they were released from prison. During both interviews, participants were asked whether they considered themselves an addict. A series of dummy variables were created: never an addict, new addict, and reformed addict; with persistent addict as the reference category.

  6. Importantly, this would also immensely simplify tests and presentation of indirect effects of identity, resistance to peer influence, peer antisocial influence, and delinquency on one another.

  7. Correlations among the variety count measure of delinquency ranged between 0.38 (T9 to T10) and 0.53 (T3 to T4).

  8. To be clear, a p value greater than the alpha level suggests no significant difference in fit between the models and thus a preference of the simpler model on the basis of parsimony.

  9. Stability paths, correlated changes, and cross-lagged effects were similar in a model that did not constrain the grand means to equality over time.

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  1. Department of Criminal Justice, Temple University, 514 Gladfelter Hall, 1115 Polett Walk, Philadelphia, PA, 19122, USA

    Megan Forney

  2. Department of Criminal Justice, Temple University, 527 Gladfelter Hall, 1115 Polett Walk, Philadelphia, PA, 19122, USA

    Jeffrey T. Ward

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Table 3 Direct effects of covariates to endogenous variables
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Forney, M., Ward, J.T. Identity, Peer Resistance, and Antisocial Influence: Modeling Direct and Indirect Causes of Desistance. J Dev Life Course Criminology 5, 107–135 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40865-018-0102-0

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