ABSTRACT
To state that something is related to criminal behavior is to specify a location where crime is frequently found. Theories offer guidance as to where we should look; that is, they place the descriptor in relation to other factors in an attempt to make the relationship intelligible. Searching for intervening factors is what we do when we introduce control variables into our models. With properly specifi ed models, the correlation between SES and criminal behavior should statistically disappear given that SES is a higherorder umbrella concept covering a large number of factors that contribute to it. This chapter examines intervening factors discussed in the theories presented in the previous chapter that have been proposed to explain the negative class-crime relationship. It is primarily about class-based socialization practices related to those intervening factors such as poor parenting, low level of attachment, poor school performance, and negative peer infl uences. Given the moral concerns voiced by Tittle (1983), I want to emphasize that none of the material presented in this chapter should be considered an indictment of lower-class parents; they have enough adversity to contend with.
