By Nicole Findlay
Teenage girls who end up on the opposite side of the law are often in the wrong place at the wrong time, and more importantly with the wrong person.
Leigh Greiner, a forensic psychology doctoral student, has recently conducted research that examined the factors that lead some young women into criminal behavior.
She became interested in the field after meeting Shelley Brown, an associate professor in the Department of Psychology. Brown’s expertise focused on female offenders, gender and crime.
“For years, girls and women have been neglected in research in the criminal justice realm,” said Greiner. “Now we are merely trying to catch up to research on males.”
Under Brown’s direction, Greiner examined the relationship between peer groups, delinquency and gender. Working through three Ontario young offender facilities, she conducted a questionnaire of 21 girls and 31 boys.
She found that while peer pressure accounted for some of the misbehavior, the greater influence came from a wayward older boyfriend.
“Girls had a larger number of older male peers and older boyfriends compared to boys, whose peers were primarily male, and typically the same age,” said Greiner. “I found this interesting as it is in line with prior research that has found that male peers, particularly older male romantic partners may be to blame for girls’ delinquency in adolescence.”
The adverse effects of peer relationships and romantic entanglements might be reduced through peer mentorship programs offered through schools Greiner says.
Society’s greater challenge is how to prevent girls who have dropped out of school from following a bad boyfriend into a life of crime.