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Childhood Risk Factors for Criminal Behavior during Adulthood

Eduardo Garza

Monica Rodriguez

ENGL 1302

03/23/23
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Broadly, over the past few decades, research on childhood development and its

correlation with adult criminal behavior has suggested it is an interplay of individual,

community, and social factors. There is a consensus that behavior results from a combination

of individual genetic and biological features, beginning during fetal development and

advancing throughout an individual's life. Most children become adults without involving

themselves in violent and criminal behavior, even in the presence of several risk factors. Even

though risk factors may be instrumental in children who need prevention strategies, they

cannot identify the specific children who are susceptible to involving themselves in criminal

behavior (Marono et al., 2020). Nevertheless, it has long been identified that most adult

criminals usually engage in delinquent or antisocial tendencies. Within the bounds of this

paper, it is crucial to narrow on the specific factors in childhood that may present an

individual in engaging in crime during adulthood. This research paper will discuss the

childhood risk factors that may influence adult criminal behavior.

To begin with, one of the significant childhood risk factors that predicts criminal

behavior during adulthood is adverse childhood experiences. Majorly, adverse childhood

experiences have a significant effect on the lifespan of an individual. While the popular belief

rests on the notion that a child experiencing adversity can lead to substance use as a way of

coping, it should be known that it can also develop violence and criminal behavior (Young et

al., 2016). This is best explained by the "cycle of violence." Typically, the cycle of violence

describes a phenomenon where children with a history of maltreatment commit violence in

adulthood (Bodkin et al., 2019). Various theories have been used to explain this

phenomenon, including social learning, social control, and general strain theory. Social

learning stipulates that children who are exposed to physical abuse can adopt violence as an

acceptable means of resolving conflict and responding to stress. Thus violence is always the

preferred option for them during adulthood. The social control theory explains that childhood
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adversity severs social bonds required for prosocial behavior, increasing the risk for violence

and criminality. In general, strain theory, delinquency, and criminal behaviors are usually

instigated by the incapacity to avoid aversive or painful situations such as child neglect and

abuse.

In terms of the evidence suggesting a correlation between adverse childhood

experiences and adulthood criminal behavior, various publications and research articles can

be considered. First, Likitha and Mishra (2021) examined how a child's trauma can influence

their offending behavior. While the review indicates that childhood trauma is a significant

predictor of adult criminal behavior among prisoners, it also reveals that various forms of

child maltreatment influence the type of criminal behavior. For instance, a violent crime

offender reported having a history of physical abuse, whereas sex crime offenders indicated

having been subjected to sexual abuse during childhood. In a study by Levenson and Socia

(2016), it was determined that high Adverse Childhood Experience (ACE) scores were

interlinked with a range of arrest outcomes and criminal behavior. The study showed that

adult rapists scored higher in ACE, and the critical predictors for their behavior were sexual

abuse, domestic violence, and emotional neglect.

Poverty is another prominent childhood risk factor that may cause criminal behavior

during adulthood. Low socioeconomic status during childhood has long been perceived as a

pointer to consequent criminal behaviors, even though the existing causal models are

doubted. In a research study conducted by Mok and colleagues (2018) in Denmark in a

sample of young adults reported to have cases of violence and self-harm, a relationship was

determined between disparities in family income and the risk of young adults being involved

in violent and antisocial behavior. The reasoning behind this finding was that young adults

whose family income was low did not have adequate resources while growing up, and thus

the propensity to engage in violence and criminal activity. In another study examining
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childhood predictors of violence in adolescents from low-income families, Sitnick and

colleagues (2017) revealed that family income was a significant determinant in distinguishing

adolescents that had violent arrests from those whose families had a higher income level.

Nevertheless, the study recognizes the role played by the interplay of risk factors in that the

findings suggest that while the level of family income was a single factor in discriminating

between the samples, other factors such as oppositional behavior of a child, emotional

regulation, and rejecting parenting during childhood contributed to distinguishing the

participants that were arrested for violence in comparison to those who had never been

arrested. Also, an empirical study by Manhica and other researchers (2021) determined that

childhood exposure to poverty predisposes people at the risk of committing drug-associated

crimes and substance use. Therefore, it is evident that childhood poverty plays a major role in

enabling criminal behaviors and tendencies during adulthood.

Another childhood risk factor that may predispose an individual to engage in crime

during adulthood is exposure or living with a parent or family member with criminal

behavior. The concept of intergenerational transmission of criminal behavior primarily

explains this phenomenon. Which mainly involves amalgamating various mechanisms such

as social learning, possible biogenetic risks, and a criminogenic setting with the propensity

for crime. Within the bounds of this research paper, social learning can be labeled as the most

apparent mechanism for a child to exhibit criminal behavior in later years. This is supported

by Besemer and other authors (2017) who conducted a systematic review on literature

discussing the intergenerational transmission of criminal behavior. The meta-analysis reveals

that exposure to parental crime increases an individual's likelihood of engaging in subsequent

delinquency and crime during adulthood. Another research study that weighs in on parental

crime as a risk factor is by Horan and Widom (2015). While the focus of their study is to

examine the correlation between exposure to cumulative risk in a child and factors of
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psychosocial change, they also focus on how the incarceration of a parent influences child

outcomes. In their results, they determine that the imprisonment of a parent may motivate a

child to engage in similar behavior as their parent during adulthood. Hence, parental crime

during childhood can also influence an individual to engage in criminal behavior during

adulthood.

Based on the risk factors presented above, the majority of research studies provide

that there is a need for interventions and prevention strategies to mitigate the problem.

Multifaceted interventions have been advised to address various risk factors effectively. The

available interventions that may prove practical include parenting skills training that

concurrently emphasizes minimizing antisocial behavior within the family and encouraging

interactions and behaviors that promote love (Likitha & Mishra, 2021). Socioeconomic

concerns, on the other hand, may be addressed by focusing on skills that may help resolve

financial and employment problems (Manhica et al., 2021). Regarding adverse childhood

experiences, some of the policy recommendations include providing treatment and support

programs for children and families experiencing neglect and abuse, early intervention

strategies, and reformative programs for those identified with criminal behavior. More

importantly, correctional services should also consider the well-being of the incarcerated

population. This may include implementing rehabilitation programs such as psychotherapy,

group work, vocational training, and academic skills enhancement.

In summary, the development of criminal behavior is majorly an interplay of

individual and social factors. As discussed in the paper, the incidence of criminal behavior in

adults can be understood by addressing the risk factors an individual faces during childhood.

The first risk factor highlighted is adverse childhood experiences characterized by trauma

resulting from physical, sexual, and emotional abuse. The second risk factor outlined is

childhood poverty. Under this, a low socioeconomic status mainly determined by family
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income, education, and employment may predispose an individual to engage in crime to

acquire resources. Another risk factor discussed is parental crime or incarceration. Based on

the intergenerational transmission of criminal behavior, a child may learn from their parents

or family to acquire criminal tendencies through social learning. In addition, the research

paper has also provided some recommendations that can be implemented to help deal with

the problem.

References

1. Besemer, S., Ahmad, S. I., Hinshaw, S. P., & Farrington, D. P. (2017). A systematic

review and meta-analysis of the intergenerational transmission of criminal behavior.

Aggression and violent behavior, 37, 161–178.

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2. Bodkin, C., Pivnick, L., Bondy, S. J., Ziegler, C., Martin, R. E., Jernigan, C., &

Kouyoumdjian, F. (2019). History of Childhood Abuse in Populations

Incarcerated in Canada: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. American

journal of public health, 109(3), e1–e11. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2018.304855

3. Horan, J. M., & Widom, C. S. (2015). Cumulative childhood risk and adult

functioning in abused and neglected children grown up. Development and

Psychopathology, 27(3), 927–941.

4. Levenson, J. S., & Socia, K. M. (2016). Adverse childhood experiences and arrest

patterns in a sample of sexual offenders. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 31(10),

1883-1911.

5. Likitha, S., & Mishra, K. K. (2021). A Review on Relationship of Childhood Trauma

with Offending Behaviour. Society &, 15.

6. Manhica, H., Straatmann, V. S., Lundin, A., Agardh, E., & Danielsson, A. K. (2021).

Association between poverty exposure during childhood and adolescence, and

drug use disorders and drug‐related crimes later in life. Addiction, 116(7), 1747-

1756.

7. Marono, A. J., Reid, S., Yaksic, E., & Keatley, D. A. (2020). A behavior sequence

analysis of serial killers' lives: From childhood abuse to methods of murder.

Psychiatry, psychology and law, 27(1), 126–137.

8. Mok, P. L., Antonsen, S., Pedersen, C. B., Carr, M. J., Kapur, N., Nazroo, J., &

Webb, R. T. (2018). Family income inequalities and trajectories through childhood

and self-harm and violence in young adults: a population-based, nested case-control

study. The Lancet Public Health, 3(10), e498-e507.

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9. Sitnick, S. L., Shaw, D. S., Weaver, C. M., Shelleby, E. C., Choe, D. E., Reuben, J.

D., ... & Taraban, L. (2017). Early childhood predictors of severe youth

violence in low-income male adolescents. Child development, 88(1), 27–40.

10. Young, S., Taylor, E., & Gudjonsson, G. (2016). Childhood predictors of criminal

offending: results from a 19-year longitudinal epidemiological study of

boys. Journal of attention disorders, 20(3), 206-213.