Explaining Official Delinquency: a Spatial Study of Class, Conflict and Control

Abstract

The correlation between social class and official delinquency is one of the more stable findings of sociological research. Consensus, conflict and organizational explanations of this correlation are examined with a coordinated set of survey, interview, and official data gathered in the central area of a middle-sized Canadian city. These data make possible the consideration of behavior and official rate-producing processes in a model that lends support to a combination of conflict and organizational perspectives. Consideration is given to the need for additional research using a similar frame-work in other types of community settings.