Anti-Social Behaviour in Adolescence. An Active Choice?

Adolescent anti-social behaviour (ASB) has long been a focus of research, but there has been little work on the adolescents who abstain from it despite their appearing similar in many ways to those who engage. Protective social and environmental factors have been identified but less is known about intrapersonal personality factors that may support abstention. Understanding these individual differences could inform the development of targeted behavioural interventions. The aim of the proposed research is to identify these factors and to pilot a potential intervention designed to strengthen young people's ability to abstain from ASB.