ABSTRACT
The inter-relationship between criminal tendency and marital status was at one time a popular topic in criminological texts. Other writers have discussed the possible effect of marriage in reforming the delinquent. Hurwitz suggested that early marriage might be linked with crime because both are features of the lower social classes, or alternatively because early marriage produces financial problems that lead to crime. Other writers have discussed the possible effect of marriage in reforming the delinquent. An attempt was made to test the hypothesis that early marriage reduces criminality. Among those married under 21 there were 25 men with one or more convictions for offences committed before their date of marriage. Delinquents made very significantly more self-report delinquency admissions than non-delinquents. The contrast between delinquents and nondelinquents was in fact almost as great as it had been at age 18, but the percentages of married and of unmarried men who gave high self-report delinquency scores were not significantly different.
