| Criminologists have emphasized the importance accurately predicting which youths will engage in criminal behaviors. The vast majority of empirical investigations have identified a host of individual characteristics and environmental factors that heighten one's risk for delinquency. Despite continued efforts to improve prediction, outcomes for some individuals are inconsistent with that which is predicted. Some youth appear to be more resilient to the risks they encounter, while others possess a heightened vulnerability. Outcomes among these cases are not well understood. The primary aim of this dissertation is to assess the extent to which genetic and environmental factors contribute to individual variation in response to risk. Based on the differential susceptibility perspective, individuals are hypothesized to vary in their sensitivity to the conditions to which they are exposed. Furthermore, this perspective proposes that differences in sensitivity are the result of both genetic and environmental factors.;Biometrical genetic modeling is employed to investigate the genetic and environmental contributions to differential response to risk for delinquency. Results obtained from a subsample of twins from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health indicate that both genetic and environmental influences contribute to variation in the response to risk. Additionally, the magnitude of the effects differs between males and females, with additive genetic influences having a stronger influence in males and common environmental influences having a stronger effect in females. The differences between vulnerable youth and the overall population are largely due to genetic factors; however, the observed differences between resilient youths and the population appear to be due to environmental factors. The theoretical and policy implications of these findings are discussed. |
