SEX-DIFFERENCES IN CRIME - DO MEANS AND WITHIN-SEX VARIATION HAVE SIMILAR CAUSES

The mean level of delinquency is generally greater in males than in famales. This article investigates whether the determinants of this mean sex difference are the same as those of delinquency variation within-sex. The first analytic approach focused on variables. A variable that explained more variation among individuals in delinquency also had a larger mean difference between males and females. The correlates of delinquency were also similar in males and females. The second analytic approach used individuals as the unit of analysis. In a structural equation model, a single latent trait could explain most of the sex difference in the manifest variables of delinquency, impulsivity, rebelliousness, and deceitfulness. The mean difference in delinquency between males and females may arise because males are more exposed to these common etiologic factors than are females.