ABSTRACT
Antisocial personality in one of the parents could lead both to the divorce and to the son's conduct disorder. Offspring of divorce axe over-represented in samples of children referred for counseling or therapy because of antisocial and aggressive behavior. This chapter considers the relation between parental divorce and "antisocial" behaviors, including conduct problems, drug use, running away, and shoplifting, among others. Adolescent children reported on their usage of illicit substances such as alcohol, marijuana. Official statistics do suggest that delinquents are more likely to come from nontraditional homes. Regardless of whether criminal statistics or self-report measures are used, delinquent behavior is more common among boys than girls in all broad categories, even though the same variables are thought to explain the propensity toward delinquency for both sexes. Researchers considering race differences in the effect of the nontraditional home on offspring have most often compared African-American and Caucasian offspring. Professionals disregard divorce as a major variable in explaining juvenile delinquency.
