The fact that accidents and forms of deviant or problematic behaviour may be related phenomena has been suggested in the literature by only a few researchers. In particular, Gottfredson and Hirschi (1990) explicitly discuss this association in the formulation of their theory of self-control. According to them a positive relation is supportive of their theory and difficult to explain by competing theories. This report presents some empirical findings on the relationship between accidents and risky behaviour. Results show that involvement in accidents is more likely to happen among children involved in drinking, smoking, gambling, shoplifting and vandalism. In addition, it shows that correlates of accident involvement are to some extent also correlates of risky behaviour.
Abstract