Hirshi's Social Control Theory

Introduction
This case study will be looking at a 15 year old boy named Bill, who has an extensive history of drug related crimes, including theft. Bill is currently serving a two year sentence in youth detention, however he has previously had community based sentences and other contact with the criminal justice system. Bill has a serious substance abuse problem which began at the age of 9 years old. Bill first started using cannabis, however went on to using LSD, ecstasy and heroin at times, and is currently using methamphetamines around once a week. Bill comes from a well off family, attends private school and presents in interview as being articulate and high achieving. Bill’s parents are divorced, with his father being quite a distant
figure in his life. Research has found that most youthful offenders who appear before the court do not live in a nuclear family (Cunneen, White and Richards, 2015), which is the case with Bill who has lived with mother, who was indulgent and could see no wrong in Bill’s actions. The purpose of this case study is to examine Bill’s behavioural problems and address his criminogenic needs by devising a treatment and rehabilitation plan which is measurable. The evaluation and potential success of the devised plan will also be examined.
Assessment
The available information on Bill suggests that his drug use is related to experienced stress and escapism rather than peer pressure (Farrugia, 2014). Bill comes a financially stable home; however, his indulgent mother and lack of a father figure appear to have left him without any behavioural boundaries. Over time his experimenting with various types of drugs has led to an addiction that sees him committing drug related crimes including theft. Bill has stolen from most family members since becoming involved in drug use. According to research conducted by Farrugia (2014) the above is evidence that Bill is a young person in distress. As a young person, he should not have a desire to use drugs and his drug use is evidence that there is a problem in another area of his life. As Bill’s offending behaviour is a result of his substance abuse, treatment needs to consider the special needs he has a youth and the associated psychological issues (Brunelle, Bertrand, Beaudoin, Ledoux, Gendron, & Arseneault, 2013). Research has shown that the severity of a youth’s psychological problems is associated with higher levels of substance abuse, in addition to this, involvement in crime increases the risk of relapse into drug addiction (Brunelle et al., 2013). In addition to this, research conducted by Farrell and White (1998) found that a distressed relationship between an adolescent and their mother was a predictor of frequent drug use amongst adolescents.
Conceptualisation
Hirshi’s social control theory suggests that weakened social ties contribute to delinquency.
Youth with weak family ties and living without both biological parents are significant predictors of delinquency and drug use (Barfield-Cottledge, 2015). Hirshi (1969) theorised that the social bond has four elements: attachment, commitment, involvement and belief (Cunneen et al., 2015). Attachment refers to ties of affection and respect to family and friends in one’s life (Cunneen et al., 2015). Bill has described his mother as being an indulgent parent who could see no wrong in her son, while describing his father and being a distant figure. Bill’s own description of his parents suggest weak ties with both of them and a lack of respect. He appears to have no respect for them, nor does he have any defined behavioural boundaries. His mother has continued to support him after stealing from most family members over the years. Commitment refers to activities such as school or sport/hobbies and goals (Cunneen et al., 2015). Bill attends a private school and appears in interview to be articulate and high achieving, however his extensive history of crime, community based sentences and contact with the criminal justice system suggest that he is not committed to his education. Involvement refers to the conventional activities one does that shape immediate and long-term opportunities (Cunneen et al., 2015). To date, Bill appears to be involved in more criminal activity and drug use than conventional activities, which is paving the way for an increased risk of more criminal activity and substance abuse. Belief refers to the legal rules and moral consensus in society. Bill seems to present in a manner that suggests that he knows right from wrong, by showing remorse for his actions and claiming he is ready to go straight, however his family members and youth workers suggest that this is not the case, and his actions are showing that he is not committed to positive
change. Control theory is an important theoretical framework in the study of deviant behaviour and can assist in understanding how deviant youth become involved with drug use (Marcos & Bahr, 1988). Research conducted by Marcos and Bahr (1988) investigated the link between social control theory and adolescent drug use. Findings indicated that although parental attachment does not directly link to substance use, it is linked to conventional values, educational attachment, self-worth and attachment to religion, all of which are indirectly linked to a sense of belonging (Marcos & Bahr, 1988). The data indicates that parents, teachers and religious leaders are imperative in educating young people in morality and are also vital inclusions in any treatment or prevention efforts (Marcos & Bahr, 1988). Bandura’s social learning theory also suggests that children learn vicariously through the actions of adults (Howitt, 2015). Although there is no evidence to suggest either of Bill’s parents were substance users, at the age of 9 Bill must have observed and learnt about this behaviour from somewhere. A nine year old boy using cannabis needs to have learnt about and sourced drugs from someone known to him. Social learning theory explains the learnt behaviour of using drugs as a form of dealing with stress and escaping from daily struggles. Bandura (1977) suggested that family, peer groups and mass media were the three main sources for observational learning (Wortley, 2011). Bill most likely learnt about using drugs and related criminal activity from a peer group or friends who normalised the activity (Wortley, 2011). His offending has been positively reinforced by way of obtaining substances to feed his addiction