CRITICISMS 

Criticism 1: The sample was culturally biased in more ways than one.​ The sample only used children from Roman catholic schools and religion can have a strong impact of moral behaviour. Heaven included no students with a different religion or with no religion. In addition to this, they were both fee-paying schools, meaning that they all probably came from well-off families. Studies have also shown links between criminals and income, so the study would have been better had Heaven included some poorer participants. Finally, the study shows the patterns in Australia but that isn't to stay other nationalities would be the same. 

Criticism 2: The results could have been affected by age bias. The average age of participants was fourteen the first time round and sixteen the second, this could mean they were too old to show signs of delinquency. Behaviour such as vandalism, violence and theft is usually shown earlier in life if the child is to show signs of delinquency.