Relationship Between Self Identity And Criminal Behavior

Self-identity is the concept of oneself as well as the individual perceptions about one's abilities, flaws, status, and worth. The criminal lifestyle can be attractive to individuals that seek subcultural endorsements from those within a particular subculture because they may not have the means to do so in a legitimate manner (Climbing the Corporate ladder). When mentioning personal gain we can associate this with the street “hustler”. Criminal lifestyles center on deviant and reckless behavior (i.e. drug use and alcohol consumption) which is considered a prominent characteristic of a criminal lifestyle. For example, a street hustler /drug dealer achieves their version of personal gain by having an established reputation and by making large amounts of money in the drug game.
al (2008) found that those who engage in illegitimate drug economies on the street construct types (self-identity) to show status in the business and surrounding social structure. Copes et. al (2008) also suggest, that through interactions, boundaries and identities are constructed by individuals to differentiate themselves from members they view as having lower status in the street life. The stability of criminal behavior over the life course varies due to certain factors and one of them is the age of onset of antisocial behavior. Studies by developmental theorist Terrie E. Moffitt (1993) show, in regards to the stability of criminal behavior overtime, people have fundamentally different paths and processes over the life course. Dr. Moffitt categorized individuals into non-offenders, adolescence-limited offenders, and life-course-persistent offenders. Furthermore, her findings indicate that both life-course-persistent and adolescence-limited offenders differ in the age of onset as well as when they “stop”