Doctoral Dissertation Research: Putting the Person into Context: An Integration of Personality and Social Disorganization Theory

This dissertation will investigate the joint personality and neighborhood determinants of juvenile and adolescent antisocial behvaior. Data come from the Rural Substance Use and Violence Project, a longitudinal survey of middle school students in Kentucky. Part of that survey included measures of the 'Five Factor Model' of personality; data on the child's neighborhood context are also available. Analyses using multilevel models will focus on whether each determinant has independent effects on antisocial behavior and whether the two interact so that both are jointly necessary. These statistical analyses will be supplemented by qualitative data from school personnel including their reactions to the survey instrument and the statistical results as well as an assessment of the school atmosphere.