Hirshi's Social Control Theory

Introduction
This case study will be looking at a 15 year old boy named Bill, who has an extensive history of drug related crimes, including theft. Bill is currently serving a two year sentence in youth detention, however he has previously had community based sentences and other contact with the criminal justice system. Bill has a serious substance abuse problem which began at the age of 9 years old. Bill first started using cannabis, however went on to using LSD, ecstasy and heroin at times, and is currently using methamphetamines around once a week. Bill comes from a well off family, attends private school and presents in interview as being articulate and high achieving. Bill’s parents are divorced, with his father being quite a distant
Youth with weak family ties and living without both biological parents are significant predictors of delinquency and drug use (Barfield-Cottledge, 2015). Hirshi (1969) theorised that the social bond has four elements: attachment, commitment, involvement and belief (Cunneen et al., 2015). Attachment refers to ties of affection and respect to family and friends in one’s life (Cunneen et al., 2015). Bill has described his mother as being an indulgent parent who could see no wrong in her son, while describing his father and being a distant figure. Bill’s own description of his parents suggest weak ties with both of them and a lack of respect. He appears to have no respect for them, nor does he have any defined behavioural boundaries. His mother has continued to support him after stealing from most family members over the years. Commitment refers to activities such as school or sport/hobbies and goals (Cunneen et al., 2015). Bill attends a private school and appears in interview to be articulate and high achieving, however his extensive history of crime, community based sentences and contact with the criminal justice system suggest that he is not committed to his education. Involvement refers to the conventional activities one does that shape immediate and long-term opportunities (Cunneen et al., 2015). To date, Bill appears to be involved in more criminal activity and drug use than conventional activities, which is paving the way for an increased risk of more criminal activity and substance abuse. Belief refers to the legal rules and moral consensus in society. Bill seems to present in a manner that suggests that he knows right from wrong, by showing remorse for his actions and claiming he is ready to go straight, however his family members and youth workers suggest that this is not the case, and his actions are showing that he is not committed to positive