This paper addresses two questions. (1) Is there a demonstrable relation between accidents and crime, does this relation hold for each type of crime and each means of transport, and does it subsist after controlling for age and gender? (2) Can social control theory explain involvement in both delinquent behaviour and in accidents. Globally, the answer of these questions is affirmative. The authors established a relatively strong relation between crime and accidents. This relation was found for all types of crime and for all means of transport. It holds for boys and girls and younger respondents (12-14) and weaker for boys and older respondents (21-24). An explanation is offered in terms of the balance between exposure/opportunities and individual causes of crime. Finally it appears that, to some extent, social control variables related to crime can explain involvement in accidents, supporting the idea that, at least in part, the statistical association between crime and accidents is the result of a common causal process. (A)
Abstract