National Institute of Justice

R e s e a r c h P r e v i e w

Jeremy Travis, Director

U.S. Department of Justice

Office of Justice Programs

National Institute of Justice

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

OFF ICE OF JUSTICE PROGRAMS

BJA NI J OJJDP BJS OVC

July 1999

Adolescent Girls: The Role of Depression

in the Development of Delinquency

Summary of research by Dawn A. Obeidallah and Felton J. Earls

Over the past 60 years, social scientists have sought

specific predictors of violent and antisocial behavior.

Much of the research on criminal activity and delinquency,

however, has been conducted on men and boys; far less

scholarly attention has focused on understanding the

development of such behavior in women and girls. This

remains the case today, despite recent reports indicating

the rate of increase in troubled adolescent girls’ antisocial

behavior surpasses that of boys.1

Researchers in the study of delinquency who assume the

development of antisocial behavior in females is similar to

that in males operate under a misconception, some

scientists argue. Indeed, the handful of empirical studies

that include findings on adolescent girls suggest that

significantly different risk factors for delinquency exist

between boys and girls.2 One of the key interests in this

research project is to describe integral factors in the

development of antisocial behavior in adolescent girls.

The research described in this Research Preview is part of

the Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods (PHDCN), an ongoing longitudinal study of precursors to antisocial behavior. (See “The Project on Human

Development in Chicago Neighborhoods.”) A central

overarching aim of the project is to investigate the influence of individual, family, and neighborhood contexts on

the development of criminality during adolescence. This

specific project focuses on predictors of adolescent girls’

antisocial behavior.

The role of depression in delinquency

Because the forces that predispose adolescent females

toward delinquency are believed to be different than those

that predispose adolescent males, the research team

investigated dimensions of risk specific to adolescent

girls that may contribute to vulnerability. In particular, they

considered how depression may predict antisocial behavior

among girls. During childhood, males’ and females’ rates

of depression are similar and relatively low. Early adolescence marks a time when the rates clearly diverge, with

a sharp rise in the onset of depression in girls.3 The

experience of depression during adolescence is hypothesized to be a central pathway through which girls’ serious

antisocial behavior develops for several reasons, which are

described below.

Although alternative sequencing is possible (i.e., engagement in antisocial behavior precedes depressive symptoms), researchers hypothesize that depression may

influence girls’ propensity toward antisocial behavior. Key

characteristics of depression include difficulty concentrating, loss of interest in previously enjoyed activities, hopelessness, feelings of worthlessness, and, at its extreme,

suicidal thoughts and tendencies. There are three hypothetical ways these depressive feelings underlie girls’

antisocial behavior:

● Depressive feelings may feed adolescent girls’ indifference regarding their own personal safety and the consequences of their actions, increasing the likelihood

they will gravitate toward delinquent activities. Many

chronic, serious, female offenders may, in fact, have

experienced depression during early adolescence.

● Depressed adolescents tend to be withdrawn, have

limited interests, and suffer from low self-esteem. Previous research has shown such youth are at risk of being

rejected by prosocial peers. Rejected youth, in turn,

tend to cluster together with other rejected youth and

form networks of deviant peers—a consistent predictor

of delinquency.

● Some research suggests antisocial youth have weakened attachments to prosocial institutions. Because

depression promotes a lack of interest and difficulty

in concentrating, youth may withdraw from prosocial

activities and institutions (e.g., schools, athletics), thus
The Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods brings together experts from many social

science disciplines to examine crime in the context of

community. It combines two studies into a single integrated research effort. The first is an intensive study

of the social, economic, organizational, political, and

cultural structure of Chicago’s neighborhoods and the

dynamic changes that occur in these places over time.

The second is a series of longitudinal studies assessing

the personal characteristics and changing circumstances of children, adolescents, and their primary

caregivers. Researchers have surveyed nearly 9,000

residents of 343 Chicago neighborhood clusters, more

than 2,800 key community leaders, and a sample of

6,000 children and adolescents (from birth to 18 years).

The Chicago project goes beyond previous studies that

have examined individuals and their communities—it

also examines individuals in their communities.*

The National Institute of Justice is conducting the study

in partnership with the Harvard School of Public Health.

The project is cofunded by the John D. and Catherine T.

MacArthur Foundation; the National Institute of Mental

Health; the Administration for Children, Youth and

Families of the U.S. Department of Health and Human

Services; and the U.S. Department of Education.

The research team includes Felton J. Earls, Principal

Investigator and Director of the project, Harvard School

of Public Health; Stephen L. Buka, Co-Principal Investigator, Harvard School of Public Health; Robert

Sampson, Scientific Director for Community Design,

University of Chicago; Stephen Raudenbush, Scientific

Director for Analysis, Michigan State University; Jeanne

Brooks-Gunn, Scientific Director for Longitudinal Design,

Columbia Teacher’s College; Maya Carlson, Policy

Analyst, Harvard Medical School; and Daniel Kindlon,

Research Associate, Harvard Medical School.

Understanding community influences

The study’s particular focus on the effects that community and neighborhood contexts have on individual

behavior provides a better understanding of the role of

changing social environments on human development.

To date, researchers have amassed a wealth of information that reveals significant ways in which the social

environment of a neighborhood shapes and determines

behavior as well as identifies the developmental

The Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods

pathways that lead individuals toward or away from a

variety of antisocial behaviors. This knowledge will help

practitioners and policymakers develop effective strategies for prevention, intervention, treatment, and rehabilitation, as well as sanctions.

As the project’s researchers continue to explore how

communities influence individual development, they also

are addressing specific questions such as “What role

is played by a community’s economic opportunities?”

and “How are residents affected by a range of social

factors?” Another concept being explored is the “spheres

of influence” or “nested contexts” theory that within the

larger community are smaller influences that play important roles in human development. These influences range

from social contexts, such as school and peer groups,

to family relationships, to an individual’s own health and

temperament.

The research project on adolescent girls is part of the

longitudinal study and was developed in response to

the rapidly increasing rates of delinquency among young

females. Researchers are examining the delinquent

behaviors and depressive symptoms of 12- and 15-yearold girls with respect to individual, family, and neighborhood influences. Specifically, the study aims to

disentangle neighborhood effects from individual and

family factors using project data.

Note

*Sampson, R.J., and D.J. Bartusch, Attitudes Toward

Crime, Police, and the Law: Individual and Neighborhood

Differences, Research Preview, Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, National Institute of Justice, 1999, FS 000240;

Earls, F.J., Linking Community Factors and Individual Development, Research Preview, Washington, DC: U.S. Department

of Justice, National Institute of Justice, 1998, FS 000230;

Sampson, R.J., S. Raudenbush, and F.J. Earls, Neighborhood

Collective Efficacy—Does It Help Reduce Violence? Research

Preview, Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, National

Institute of Justice, 1998, FS 000203; Earls, F.J., and C. Visher,

Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods:

A Research Update, Research in Brief, Washington, DC: U.S.

Department of Justice, National Institute of Justice, 1997,

NCJ 163603; and Project on Human Development in Chicago

Neighborhoods, Assessing the Exposure of Urban Youth to

Violence, Research Preview, Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice, National Institute of Justice, 1996.
attenuating their attachment to these institutions and

increasing their likelihood of engaging in antisocial

behaviors.

This pernicious mix could be dangerous for depressed

adolescent girls. Understanding the role of depression in

the development of girls’ delinquency has clear implications for the formation of programs designed to prevent

and treat serious delinquency in females.

Although this Preview focuses on depression, another

specific risk factor for female delinquency is early pubertal

maturation, which, in previous research, has been associated with the onset of both depression and antisocial

behavior.4

 The findings of PHDCN’s research, however,

do not suggest a relationship between early pubertal

development and antisocial behavior or aggression.

Preliminary results from PHDCN

A relationship between depression and antisocial behavior

has been documented; however, the majority of that work

has focused on white girls in the middle to upper socioeconomic echelons. The PHDCN sample draws from an

ethnically and socioeconomically diverse urban population,

and, as such, the findings should have significance for a

much wider segment of the youth population.

In the first wave of PHDCN’s study, interviewers asked 

12- and 15-year-old white, African-American, and Latina

girls (n=754) about their level of involvement in antisocial

behavior and their level of depressive symptomatology

during the 12 months prior to the interview. Involvement

in antisocial behavior was measured using the Self-Report

of Offending. The Youth Self-Report (YSR) was used to

determine girls’ levels of depressive symptomatology.5

Among 12-year-old girls, the following were found:

● Twenty-five percent of whites, 33 percent of AfricanAmericans, and 27 percent of Latinas reported

committing at least one property crime.

● Twenty-three percent of whites, 47 percent of AfricanAmericans, and 19 percent of Latinas reported

committing at least one crime against another person.

The level of involvement in property crimes and crimes

against other persons was greater across the board

among 15-year-old girls:

● Sixty percent of whites, 55 percent of AfricanAmericans, and 54 percent of Latinas reported

committing at least one property crime.

● Forty-nine percent of whites, 70 percent of AfricanAmericans, and 50 percent of Latinas reported

committing at least one crime against another person.

With respect to relatively serious levels of aggressive

behaviors, 9 percent of white, 19 percent of AfricanAmerican, and 4 percent of Latina 12-year-olds scored in

a range above the clinical threshold for antisocial behavior

as stipulated in YSR. Among 15-year-old girls, 13 percent

of whites, 22 percent of African-Americans, and 24 percent

of Latinas scored above the clinical threshold for antisocial

behavior. Race and ethnic differences also were found,

suggesting that while African-American girls engaged in

the highest number of crimes against other persons in both

age groups, 15-year-old white girls engaged in the highest

number of property crimes.

The relationship between clinical

depression and antisocial behavior

In the next set of analyses, researchers compared antisocial behavior of girls who were mildly to moderately

depressed with those who were not depressed. They

found the following:

● Although 40 percent of nondepressed girls engaged in

property crimes, 68 percent of girls who were mildly to

moderately depressed did so. Furthermore, 42 percent

of girls who were not depressed engaged in crimes

against other persons, compared with 82 percent of

mildly to moderately depressed girls.

● Fifty-seven percent of mildly to moderately depressed

girls engaged in higher levels of aggressive behavior,

compared with only 13 percent of those who were not

depressed.

Even controlling for socioeconomic status, mildly to

moderately depressed girls were more likely to commit

property crimes and crimes against other people than their

nondepressed counterparts. There were also no racial or

ethnic differences with respect to mild to moderate depression. From this, researchers can hypothesize that racial

and ethnic differences in antisocial behavior do not reflect

variations in depression by race and ethnicity.

Overall, these preliminary findings suggest mildly to

moderately depressed girls may be at risk of engaging

in antisocial behavior. Treating depression may have a

twofold benefit: undermining the development and maintenance of antisocial behavior as well as reducing depression. Future PHDCN endeavors will include examining

potential intervening links between depressive symptoms

and antisocial behavior, such as association with deviant

peers, substance use, poor academic achievement, and

conflicted parent-child relationships.

Future investigations

Given the importance of depressive phenomena, additional

detailed information is being gathered in the second

wave of the study, which will permit researchers to make

psychiatric diagnoses of depression and suicidal behavior.

Plans are currently under way to explore critical precursors
U.S. Department of Justice

Office of Justice Programs

National Institute of Justice

Washington, DC 20531

Official Business

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PERMIT NO. G–91

Dawn A. Obeidallah, Ph.D., is an Instructor in the Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, and a Research

Associate in the Department of Maternal and Child Health,

Harvard School of Public Health. Felton J. Earls, M.D., is

Professor of Human Behavior and Development, Harvard

School of Public Health, and Professor of Child Psychiatry

at Harvard Medical School. This study was sponsored by NIJ

grants 98–IJ–CX–0042 and 93–IJ–CX–K005. This and other

NIJ publications can be found at and downloaded from

the NIJ Web site (http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/nij).

Findings and conclusions of the research reported here are those of the

authors and do not necessarily reflect the official position or policies of

the U.S. Department of Justice.

FS 000244

The National Institute of Justice is a component of the Office of

Justice Programs, which also includes the Bureau of Justice Assistance, the Bureau of Justice Statistics, the Office of Juvenile Justice

and Delinquency Prevention, and the Office for Victims of Crime.

of adolescent girls’ antisocial behavior and depression

based on the second wave of PHDCN.

Specifically, researchers will investigate how early

depression relates to subsequent antisocial behavior,

how certain characteristics of families and neighborhoods

predispose some girls to delinquency, how changes in

levels of family violence during adolescence predict girls’

antisocial behavior, and how substance abuse plays a role

in depression and antisocial behavior. Further, the second

wave of data collection will obtain information regarding

lifetime exposure to stress and traumatic events (e.g.,

sexual assault, abuse). Analyzing such information will

facilitate understanding of the context in which girls’

depressive symptoms and antisocial behavior emerge.

Notes

1. Snyder, H.N., Juvenile Arrests 1996, Juvenile Justice

Bulletin, Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice,

Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention,

1997, NCJ 167578.

2. Wangby, M., L.R. Bergman, and D. Magnusson, “Development of Adjustment Problems in Girls: What Syndromes

Emerge,” Child Development 70 (1999): 678–699.

3. Although depression is associated with delinquency in

boys, it is thought to be a stronger predictor of delinquency

in girls. Kovacs, M., “Presentation and Course of Major

Depressive Disorder During Childhood and Later Years of

the Life Span,” Journal of the American Academy of Child

and Adolescent Psychiatry 35 (1996): 705–715. Also see

Renouf, A.G., and S. Harter, “Low Self-Worth and Anger

as Components of the Depressive Experience in Young

Adolescents,” Development and Psychopathology 2 (1990):

293–310.

4. Brooks-Gunn, J., J.A. Graber, and R.L. Paikoff, “Studying

Links Between Hormones and Negative Affect: Models

and Measures,” Journal of Research on Adolescence 4

(1994): 469–486. Also see Stattin, H., and D. Magnusson,

Pubertal Maturation in Female Development, Hillsdale, NJ:

Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, 1990.

5. See Earls, F., and Reiss, A., PHDCN Version of the SelfReport of Offending Scale, unpublished manuscript; and

Achenbach, T.M., Manual for the Youth Self-Report,

Burlington, VT: University of Vermont, Department of

Psychiatry, 1991.