Abstract

The current study examines the relationship between parenting styles, punishment tactics, and crime and delinquency in adolescence and adulthood. To investigate this topic we distributed three surveys to 125 particioants, made up of College of Wooster students and CloudConnect Research users. The Parent-Child Conflict Tactic Scale was used to determine punishment practices, the Parenting Authority Questionnaire was used to determine parenting style, and the Crime and Delinquency Scale was used to determine levels of criminal activity. Results found that Authoritarian parenting was positively correlated with higher levels of criminal and delinquent activity in several categories. We also found that punishment tactics that included Psychological Aggression and Physical Assault were positively correlated with criminal and delinquent activities. Additionally, we investigated the relationship between parenting styles and punishment tactics, and found that both Psychological Aggression and Physical Assault had a correlation with Authoritarian parenting. This study highlights the importance of parenting and punishment tactics, and these results suggest that Authoritarian parenting and harsh punishment may be harmful in the long term.

Advisor

Casey, Michael

Department

Psychology

Disciplines

Developmental Psychology | Social and Behavioral Sciences

Keywords

Parenting Styles, Delinquency, Punishment

Publication Date

2025

Degree Granted

Bachelor of Arts

Document Type

Senior Independent Study Thesis

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© Copyright 2025 Karen Thornton