Self-Control Theory: Theoretical and Research Issues

The Role of Self-Control in Cyberbullying Bystander Behavior

“…Among the six subcomponents of LSC, impulsivity and preference for risk taking were found to be strong predictors of engaging in delinquency and crime (Longshore 1998;Piquero and Rosay 1998;Rocque et al 2016;Ward et al 2015), and these subcomponents as well as self-centeredness are associated with behavioral disorders and conduct problems, independently of the general construct of LSC (Hay and Meldrum 2015;Loeber et al 1998;Moffitt et al 2011;Pechorro et al 2022), suggesting these three subcomponents are the core features of LSC (Pechorro et al 2022). To this end, Pechorro et al (2022) examined different structures (i.e., general factor, correlated factors, second order factor, and bifactor model) of the original and shorter version of the LSC scale (i.e., consisting of risk taking, self-centeredness, and impulsivity) and found adequate to good fit indices as well as strong cross-gender measurement invariance for the latter.…”

The Relevance of the Dual Systems Model for Predicting Offending Among College Students: The Moderating Role of Deviant Peer Influence

“…Second, it was assumed that self-control was generally established early in life and demonstrated little to no development following childhood. While a great deal of research provided support for self-control theory (Pratt & Cullen, 2000; Rocque & Piquero, 2019; Vazsonyi et al, 2017), the dual systems model challenges both of these assumptions and has also found support since its inception. Essentially, the dual systems model delineates this concept of self-control into the two dimensions of sensation seeking and impulsivity.…”

Changing self‐control: Promising efforts and a way forward

“…Third, although there is accumulating evidence that self‐control matters across demographic groups (see Rocque & Piquero, 2019; Vazsonyi & Crosswhite, 2004; Wolfe, 2015), much less is known about whether some groups, whether based on race, ethnicity, gender, etc., are more or less responsive to self‐control intervention efforts and whether such programs require booster shots over time (cf. Muraven et al., 1999).…”

“…They delineated six facets of self‐control, including impulsivity, quick temper, orientation toward physical rather than mental activities, orientation toward simple rather than complex tasks, self‐centeredness, and risk taking. Research has not been consistent concerning whether these facets are all part of one underlying trait (e.g., self‐control; Rocque & Piquero, 2019). However, some work has shown that certain facets such as risk taking and temper are more related to antisocial conduct than others (Conner, Stein, & Longshore, 2009; LaGrange & Silverman, 1999; Forrest, Hay, Widdowson, & Rocque, 2019).…”

“…For example, meta‐analytic work has shown that self‐control is consistently related to antisocial behavior (Pratt & Cullen, 2000; Vazsonyi, Mikuška, & Kelley, 2017), perhaps the most important claim the authors made. At the same time, there does appear to be some “shuffling” of people in terms of their relative self‐control ranking, suggesting that self‐control may not be particularly stable after childhood, though short‐term stability has been found (Rocque & Piquero, 2019; Vazsonyi & Jiskrova, 2018). The notion that parents are the key to childhood self‐control and thus life‐long outcomes is somewhat controversial, with certain scholarship suggesting that parents are important for the development of self‐control (Botchkovar, Marshall, Rocque, & Posick, 2015; Burt, Simons, & Simons, 2006; Hay, 2001; Janssen, Eichelsheim, Deković, & Bruinsma, 2016; Perrone, Sullivan, Pratt, & Margaryan, 2004; Vazsonyi & Huang, 2010; Vazsonyi & Javakhishvili, 2019).…”