An Analysis of the Relationship Between Child Maltreatment in Adolescence/Young Adulthood and Criminal Behavior.
Open Access
- Author:
- Seiden, Rachel
- Area of Honors:
- Criminology
- Degree:
- Bachelor of Science
- Document Type:
- Thesis
- Thesis Supervisors:
- Holly Nguyen, Thesis Supervisor
Stacy Silver, Thesis Honors Advisor - Keywords:
- child maltreatment
crime
drug/alcohol crimes
sex crimes
neglect
sexual abuse
general crime
social learning theory
self control theory - Abstract:
- Child maltreatment is detrimental to the physical and emotional well-being of children who experience it. Understanding and studying child maltreatment and its relationship with other behaviors can aid researchers in developing strategies to break the cycle of abuse and promote healthy relationships and parenting practices. The relationship between child maltreatment and later criminal behavior has been analyzed in numerous studies, but findings on this matter vary significantly. As such, the current study examines the possible link between child maltreatment and later criminal behavior, while focusing on two theories of crime to explain this possible relationship: the social learning theory of crime and the self-control theory of crime. The data in the current study was obtained from a study conducted by Diane J. English and Cathy Spatz in 2003, titled “Childhood Victimization and Delinquency, Adult Criminality, and Violent Criminal Behavior in a Large Urban County in the Northwest United States”. Bivariate and multivariate analyses were conducted and results show: (1) Child maltreatment, generally, is related to later criminal activity, generally, supporting self-control theory. (2) Child neglect is related to later engagement in sex crimes. (3) Social learning theory was not supported, as no significant relationship was found between childhood neglect and later involvement in drug/alcohol offenses, nor between childhood sexual abuse and subsequent engagement in sex crimes. (4) Maltreated males are more likely to engage in crime than maltreated females. (5) Maltreated Black individuals are more likely to engage in crime than maltreated Caucasian individuals. Future research should prioritize studying specific types of child maltreatment to unravel the mechanisms linking it to later criminal behavior.