Broken homes, parental psychiatric illness, and female delinquency.

Fifty-nine families with delinquent daughters were compared with 59 families, matched on socioeconomic class, with daughters of the same age who were not delinquent. The frequency of broken homes was found to be the strongest distinguishing factor between probands and controls. Parental disabilities appeared to play a part in the incidence of delinquency among girls, particularly when the disabilities result in a broken home.