Recession babies may be more likely to be teen delinquents

[Redfairen]

Source: CBS News

Researchers discovered that there was a strong correlation children born during high unemployment rates during and after the 1980 and 1981 - 1982 recession and behavioral problems in adolescence.

"The results demonstrate a strong correlation between the unemployment rate during infancy and subsequent behavioral problems. This finding suggests that unfavorable economic conditions during infancy may create circumstances that can affect the psychological development of the infant and lead to the development of behavioral problems in adolescence," the authors wrote.

Researchers used data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997, which included a group of 8,984 adolescents born from Jan. 1, 1980 through Dec. 31, 1984. The survey asked questions about drug, alcohol and gun use, as well as arrests, thefts and other behaviors.

One-year-old children during this time frame who were in an environment that was 1 percent away from the mean regional unemployment rates had a higher chance of using marijuana (9 percent more), smoking (7 percent), using alcohol (6 percent), getting arrested (17 percent), being affiliated with a gang (9 percent) and committing petty (6 percent) and major theft (11 percent) during adolescence. There was no significant association between using hard drugs and assaultive behavior.

Read more: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-204_162-57561520/recession-babies-may-be-more-likely-to-be-teen-delinquents/

[valerief]

1. Teen babies. Very interesting. nt

[SharonAnn]

15. High level of cortisol (stress hormone) in mother's blood during pregnancy?

It would be interesting to find out if there's any correlation.

Then, could a continuing high level of cortisol influence parenting? Perhaps making it less than optimal?

They're finding out more and more about the somewhat hidden effects of cortisol in the blood and how it influences behavior, metabolism, etc.

[Tikki]

2. And along with bush's recession we had bush wars and all of bush's legacy is...

about screwing over as many people, families, as he could to line the pockets
of his buddies.

As these young ones grow and become more politically aware they are going to build up resentments.
Let's make sure the textbooks aren't revisionist, that they know who was the villain in our government. And we need to support Liberal institutions and community members who are progressive.


Tikki

[olddad56]

6. we had a crime family leading the country.

[Zephie]

3. Oh lawd, 9% mari-ju-huana usage!

Where's the fainting couch?

I love how it goes on to say there was no connection between hard drug usage and assault, but that horrible evil marijuana is totally free game as an example for how the younger demographic is "delinquent".

[kickysnana]

4. A group called "Reagan kids" grew up in that recession

changes to the safety net, and the flooding of the urban areas with drugs.

I cannot find anything quickly about them but there was a spike in lawlessness, drug crime and deaths among this group.

[Odin2005]

5. I was born in 1986, so I'm safe.

That must be why I was such a goody-goody kid!

[olddad56]

7. so how do you explain the depression babies becoming part of the "Greatest Generation"?

[NICO9000]

8. Thank you!

This study seemed like a bunch of chin-stroking hogwash to me, so thanks for making such an excellent point.

[Igel]

9. You don't.

The "Greatest Generation" grew up between the wars and fought in WWII, those who stayed at home provided the economic and material output necessary to sustain the combat.

The Depression started in 1929 in the US, so they "grew up" in 1947. They didn't fight the war. They were teens during the war. They grew up during and after the war.

That cohort's wedged between "The Greatest" and the boomers.

[jtuck004]

10. Good question. That was Tom Brokaw's term for, really, what would be a large group of mostly

white people, and mostly males, because they were far and away the beneficiaries of that time period It certainly wasn't the greatest generation if you were a woman, black, from Mexico, a Japanese civilian and many others who would provide the base for a growing number of people in greater poverty, despite the new and region-specific opportunities.

The experience of those kids growing up in the Depression would have been of a large infusion of government investment trying to feed and give them work because there was a history of the population getting downright rowdy when they got hungry. Many hated Hoover, and there are people who still vote Democrat today because of their experience under FDR (92 is not too old to remember those times). Things weren't really getting better, not enough demand, but then along came WWII with a another, and this time ginormous, HUGE infusion of government spending and human spirit into bombs and factories. Perhaps that investment helped them transcended what their fate might have been? (We regularly send kids to the military when their juvie behavior gets out of control, and a surprising number thrive by having a purpose - as FDR inferred. It's not the discipline, btw)

(During that war there was a lot of dysfunctional behavior back on the home front, btw. Many attribute it to the war, but maybe the worse atrocities hid a lot of what never made the front page.)

And at the end our factories were standing and there was tremendous amount of demand, both here and abroad.

Jobs, especially good jobs which involve creating something and not stealing obscene profits from other people's labor, I think, tend to depress criminal and JD delinquent behavior. Absent that war, where would we be? (There were a lot of underlying behavior problems back at home during the war, just btw. People blamed it on the war but what if it was the behavior of a generation raised amid deprivation?) But now, with wars like our Vietnam of Pakistan/Afghanistan and all the other ills we see, no peace bonus there is no help there for what promises to be a damn bleak future. And we face a tremendous amount of competition, excitement and growth in other economies outside of this country,

So what will these kids be like as we go forward, without a "good" war of fortuitous timing? And in a time when it is not uncommon to hear of police handcuffing or even tasing students in schools, kids shooting their classmates, etc. While there is huge pressure from the capitalists to oppress others and take what they earn from them?

Good comparison you raise.

[AlphaCentauri]

17. There was no social media and internet

They didn't have that depression express that exist today, with websites showing them how to harm them selves and a mass media that is projecting the end of the world every 10 minutes.
Also the "perfect image" of humans that the media portrait so everybody has to change their body or be unhappy the rest of their lives.

[rocktivity]

11. First Candidate for this 2013 "You Call This NEWS?" Awards

Last edited Thu Jan 10, 2013, 04:34 PM - Edit history (3)

And I'm sure Bonnie and Clyde would agree.

P.S. Be on the lookout for the Tenth Annual Rocktivity/DU "You Call This NEWS?" Awards!


rocktivity

[pscot]

12. elitist propagnda in the class war

[TalkingDog]

13. I see it as an argument FOR a living wage.

If there is a correlation between joblessness, lower income, etc. and teen crime, then make sure the initial conditions don't occur or are mediated.

[awoke_in_2003]

14. do editors not exist anymore...

how can that first sentence be allowed to exist in a major media outlet?

[WestCoastLib]

16. Seems like a non-story

We already know there is a positive correlation between poverty and delinquency, drug use & crime.

A recession means people have less money...

Doesn't require a study to surmise that delinquency will rise.