ABSTRACT
This chapter attempts to show the relevance of the general theory of crime to drug use and to the well-established association between drug use and crime. The strong relationship between crime and drugs has been shown to hold regardless of age, race, gender, or country. According to the general theory of crime, drug use, criminal acts, and reckless behavior are all manifestations of low self-control. Easily obtainable drugs, such as alcohol and cigarettes, should be for reason relatively highly correlated with general drug use. Scales were constructed to measure delinquency, drug use, and sufficient outside variables to address the questions raised earlier, including attachment to the family, attachment to peers, long-term plans and goals, and school achievement. Test of generality suggested by M. Gottfredson and T. Hirschi is stability. They state that differences in self-control remain stable over time, that those who have high self-control during adolescence have high self-control later in life, relative to others.
