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Cited by 379

The DOI matches its Crossref record; 22 of the 22 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.

Techniques of Neutralization: a Reconceptualization and Empirical Examination

Minor, W. William·1981·Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency
DOI 10.1177/002242788101800206
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Abstract

In their 1957 article, Sykes and Matza overstated the similarities between the value systems of delinquents and nondelinquents, and subsequent theorists have treated neutralization as a theoretical counterpoint to subcultural perspectives on delinquency. To overcome this artificial and unproductive dichotomization, a revision of neutralization theory is proposed that makes it compatible with subcultural interpretations of delinquency. Prior neutralization research is flawed because it fails to (1) establish the correct causal order between excuse acceptance and delinquency and (2) con trol for youths' moral evaluations of delinquent behavior. This paper presents the results of a two-wave panel study designed to overcome these shortcomings. For several forms of minor deviance, excuse acceptance is found to be related to subsequent behavior in the manner predicted by the theory. Controlling for moral evaluations and prior behavior, these relationships hold primarily for youths who disapprove of the behavior in question (as expected) but who have previously engaged in that behavior (contrary to expectation). Theoretical im plications of these findings are explored.

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Metadata

Authors
Minor, W. W.
Venue
Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency
Publisher
SAGE Publications
Published
1981-07
Volume
18
Issue
2
Pages
295-318
ISSN
  • 0022-4278 (ISSN-L)
  • 1552-731X
DOI
10.1177/002242788101800206
OpenAlex
W2163341751
Cited by
379
References
22
FWCI
11.63
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
closed

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CoChat. (2026). Citation check: Techniques of Neutralization: a Reconceptualization and Empirical Examination. https://app.cochat.ai/papers/10.1177/002242788101800206
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Minor, W. W. (1981). Techniques of Neutralization: a Reconceptualization and Empirical Examination. Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency. https://doi.org/10.1177/002242788101800206

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Contains information from the Semantic Scholar Academic Graph Datasets, made available under the ODC Attribution License (ODC-BY 1.0).

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