Farren, D. and Hough, Mike (2018) Teenagers’ perceptions of legitimacy and preparedness to break the law: the impact of migrant and ethnic minority status. In: Roche, S. and Hough, Mike (eds.) Minority Youth and Social Integration: The ISRD-3 Study in Europe and the US. New York, U.S.: Springer, pp. 219-243. ISBN 9783319894614.
Abstract
Much comparative research has charted the difficult relationships that often develop between the police and people with migrant backgrounds, especially those from minority ethnic groups. However there is very little research into the ways in which these issues play out with young teenagers. This chapter first examines the relationships between migrant status and variables relevant to procedural justice theory (mainly perceptions of procedural fairness and of legitimacy) and self-reported crime, amongst the countries that form the UPYC sub-project of the International Self-Report Delinquency Study: France, Germany, the Netherlands, the UK (disaggregated here into English and Scottish sub-samples) and the US. In four out of the six countries and in the analyses combining all six countries, migration has an effect consistent with most previous studies, namely migrants confer less trust and legitimacy on the police. The second part of the paper examines factors that appear to mediate these effects. Living in conditions of disadvantage and in disorganised neighbourhoods explains almost completely the correlation that we observe between migrant status and perceptions of legitimacy. In the third and final part of the paper we look deeper into the effect of migration on trust, legitimacy and self-reported offending by also incorporating ethnic minority status into the analysis. It is shown that minority status is the main driver of the effects apparently associated with migrant status. These results are interpreted in terms of the histories of integration—or of failed integration—of migrants from visible ethnic minorities into the host population. Implications for public policy and social science are discussed. Book synopsis: This book examines the processes for social integration and social cohesion among young people, drawing on data collected from the International Self-Report Delinquency (ISRD) study, which covered 35 studies.This report examines case studies from 5 selected countries (France, Germany, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and the United States) to provide an in-depth comparative study. Social integration processes are defined by sociologists as the mechanisms through which a society is held together, and populations are transformed into collectivities and communities. They are understood by criminologists to be an important factor in crime prevention, and factors such as peer groups and families are strong determinants of criminal behavior. In a time when society, and particularly young people, can seem increasingly fragmented (due to new technologies, rapidly increasing migration, economic inequality, and increased individuation), the researchers in this volume seek to understand whether and how these phenomena affect young people, and how they may have an impact on the development of criminal and antisocial behavior. This work will provide a framework for researchers in criminology and criminal justice, particularly with an interest in juveniles, developmental criminology, and crime prevention, as well as related fields such as sociology, social work, and demography.
Metadata
| Item Type: | Book Section |
|---|---|
| Additional Information: | DOI:10.1007/978-3-319-89462-1 |
| School: | Birkbeck Faculties and Schools > Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences > School of Social Sciences |
| Depositing User: | Administrator |
| Date Deposited: | 10 Apr 2018 12:47 |
| Last Modified: | 02 Aug 2023 17:41 |
| URI: | https://eprints.bbk.ac.uk/id/eprint/22072 |
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