Female Arab Teenagers’ Involvement in Antisocial Behavior: Intersection of Perceived Ethnonational Discrimination, Sexual Victimization, and Affiliation With Delinquent Peers

Lana Jamal Jeries-Loulou*, Mona Khoury-Kassabri

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

2 Scopus citations

Abstract

Based on intersectionality theory, the present study examined the contribution of direct, indirect, and interactive effects of individual, family, peer, and contextual factors on violence against others among female Arab teenagers. The study is based on a sample of 193 at-risk teenagers aged 12-21 ( M = 16.5), who completed questionnaires in their out-of-home care settings. Almost 60% of participants reported having perpetrated at least one moderate act of physical violence against others at least once during the preceding month. More than one-third (40%) had experienced at least one incident of sexual victimization during their lives. In addition, almost two-thirds (61%) reported experiencing at least one incident of ethnonational discrimination at least once during the past year. The findings also showed that the association between sexual victimization and moderate physical violence against others was mediated by the teenagers' affiliation with delinquent peers and moderated by perceived ethnonational discrimination. Finally, for participants with medium or high levels of perceived ethnonational discrimination, the associations between sexual victimization and perpetration of moderate physical violence, and between sexual victimization and peer delinquency, were stronger than for participants with low perceived discrimination. Examining the association between sexual victimization and violence perpetration is important, especially among at-risk teenagers in a conservative society, which expects victimized adolescents and young women to remain silent, given that silencing increases the risk of victims' involvement in delinquency and antisocial behavior. Intervention programs should be sensitive to the special situation of at-risk teenagers who experience marginalization consisting of several risk factors, including membership in an ethnonational minority and a traditional society in the context of a political conflict. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)190-202
Number of pages13
JournalAmerican Journal of Orthopsychiatry
Volume92
Issue number2
DOIs
StatePublished - 13 Jan 2022

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 Global Alliance for Behavioral Health and Social Justice

Keywords

  • Ethnonational discrimination
  • Feminist theory
  • Mediation–moderation model
  • Peer delinquency
  • Sexual victimization
  • Bullying
  • Humans
  • Arabs
  • Young Adult
  • Crime Victims
  • Sexism
  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Female
  • Antisocial Personality Disorder
  • Child

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