In a new study done by “The Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods” In 1995 revealed a much different picture. Interviews where conduced on 6,000 children and the primary caregivers over an 8 years span. The results where quite shocking to me. I like most Americans believed that crime, drugs, police, and the law was not important to the lower class of people within that society. The research focused on how neighborhood characteristics influenced behavior, potential delinquency, substance abuse and violence within distinctive neighborhoods, racial, and ethnic groups. I was surprised to find that whites, blacks nor Latinos represented a majority of the population. The study found that Chicago residents where intolerant of teenager’s behavior of social deviance. This was then broken down to racial and ethnic groups. Blacks and Latinos are less tolerant of deviance then whites: 42 percent of blacks and 47 percent of Latinos show little tolerance for deviance, whites 31 percent. The race/ethnic differences toward fighting showed that 42 percent of whites, 54 percent of blacks, and 63 percent of Latinos viewed this as extremely wrong. This study on teenage deviance clearly shows that this population of people does care about teenage deviance. So many times we have stereotyped this group and the findings show that they the race and cultures do care about deviance and it is not tolerated.
Another part of the study was on Cynicism toward the law. Questions where asked about “Laws where made to be broken” “It’s okay to do anything you want as long as you don’t hurt anyone” and “To make money, they are no right and wrong ways anymore, only easy ways and hard ways.” Blacks (29%), Latinos (31%) Whites (19%) view legal norms as not binding. It concluded that those with low socioeconomic are more likely to report legal cynicism then those with high levels of socioeconomic 36% compared to 18%. It also concluded that Blacks and Latinos and people with low socioeconomic where less satisfied about police and laws then whites.
Another part of the research was focused on “Neighborhood structure and attitudes” It was not surprising to find that neighborhoods does effect attitudes. In neighborhoods of poverty and instability people where tolerant of deviance but not teen fighting. But, minority groups where intolerant of deviance and whites where not.
The level of legal cynicism between blacks and whites where found to be similar. Blacks where more cynical and dissatisfies with the police then whites though. In neighborhoods of high crime rate there was no difference between races in attitudes toward police. It appeared that racial differences disappear when neighborhood context is considered. So, neighborhood context rather then race contributes to the attitudes of legal cynicism.
The findings in this article opened my eyes to new views about race, ethnic groups, crimes and law. As the study concluded there is no link to race or ethnicity-based subculture of violence. Neighborhood context is the influencing attitudes and beliefs about crime and the law. Thus, it shows that people live with-in a community of social norms (expected form of behavior.) The community has their values and morals that as a whole they abide by, it is not raced or ethnic based.
