The Development of Persistent Criminality addresses one of the most pressing problems of modern criminology: Why do some individuals become chronic, persistent offenders? Because chronic offenders are responsible for the majority of serious crimes committed, understanding which individuals will become chronic offenders is an important step in helping us develop interventions. This volume bridges the gap between the criminological literature, which has recently focused on the existence of various criminal trajectories, and the developmental psychology literature, which has focused on risk factors for conduct problems and delinquency. In it, chapters by some of the most widely published authors in this area unite to contribute to a knowledge base which will be the next major milestone in the field of criminology. The authors of this volume represent a unique gathering of international, interdisciplinary social problem so that we can prevent the enormous human and economic costs associated with serious crimes, these authors share their insights and findings on topics such as families and parenting, poverty, stressful life events, social support, biology and genetics, early onset, foster care, educational programs for juvenile offenders, deterrence, and chronic offending among females. Significant attention is paid throughout to longitudinal studies of offending. Several authors also share new theoretical approaches to understanding persistence and chronicity in offending, including an expansion of the conceptualization of the etiology of self-control, a discussion of offender resistance to social control, a dynamic developmental systems approach to understanding offending in young adulthood, and the application of Wikstrom's situational action theory to persistent offending.

The Development of Persistent Criminality addresses one of the most pressing problems of modern criminology: Why do some individuals become chronic, persistent offenders? Because chronic offenders are responsible for the majority of serious crimes committed, understanding which individuals will become chronic offenders is an important step in helping us develop interventions. This volume bridges the gap between the criminological literature, which has recently focused on the existence of various criminal trajectories, and the developmental psychology literature, which has focused on risk factors for conduct problems and delinquency. In it, chapters by some of the most widely published authors in this area unite to contribute to a knowledge base which will be the next major milestone in the field of criminology. The authors of this volume represent a unique gathering of international, interdisciplinary social problem so that we can prevent the enormous human and economic costs associated with serious crimes, these authors share their insights and findings on topics such as families and parenting, poverty, stressful life events, social support, biology and genetics, early onset, foster care, educational programs for juvenile offenders, deterrence, and chronic offending among females. Significant attention is paid throughout to longitudinal studies of offending. Several authors also share new theoretical approaches to understanding persistence and chronicity in offending, including an expansion of the conceptualization of the etiology of self-control, a discussion of offender resistance to social control, a dynamic developmental systems approach to understanding offending in young adulthood, and the application of Wikström's situational action theory to persistent offending.

Even though youth crime rates have fallen since the mid-1990s, public fear and political rhetoric over the issue have heightened. The Columbine shootings and other sensational incidents add to the furor. Often overlooked are the underlying problems of child poverty, social disadvantage, and the pitfalls inherent to adolescent decisionmaking that contribute to youth crime. From a policy standpoint, adolescent offenders are caught in the crossfire between nurturance of youth and punishment of criminals, between rehabilitation and "get tough" pronouncements. In the midst of this emotional debate, the National Research Council's Panel on Juvenile Crime steps forward with an authoritative review of the best available data and analysis. Juvenile Crime, Juvenile Justice presents recommendations for addressing the many aspects of America's youth crime problem. This timely release discusses patterns and trends in crimes by children and adolescentsâ€"trends revealed by arrest data, victim reports, and other sources; youth crime within general crime; and race and sex disparities. The book explores desistanceâ€"the probability that delinquency or criminal activities decrease with ageâ€"and evaluates different approaches to predicting future crime rates. Why do young people turn to delinquency? Juvenile Crime, Juvenile Justice presents what we know and what we urgently need to find out about contributing factors, ranging from prenatal care, differences in temperament, and family influences to the role of peer relationships, the impact of the school policies toward delinquency, and the broader influences of the neighborhood and community. Equally important, this book examines a range of solutions: Prevention and intervention efforts directed to individuals, peer groups, and families, as well as day care-, school- and community-based initiatives. Intervention within the juvenile justice system. Role of the police. Processing and detention of youth offenders. Transferring youths to the adult judicial system. Residential placement of juveniles. The book includes background on the American juvenile court system, useful comparisons with the juvenile justice systems of other nations, and other important information for assessing this problem.

The Development of Persistent Criminality addresses one of the most pressing problems of modern criminology: Why do some individuals become chronic, persistent offenders? Because chronic offenders are responsible for the majority of serious crimes committed, understanding which individuals will become chronic offenders is an important step in helping us develop interventions. This volume bridges the gap between the criminological literature, which has recently focused on the existence of various criminal trajectories, and the developmental psychology literature, which has focused on risk factors for conduct problems and delinquency. In it, chapters by some of the most widely published authors in this area unite to contribute to a knowledge base which will be the next major milestone in the field of criminology. The authors of this volume represent a unique gathering of international, interdisciplinary social problem so that we can prevent the enormous human and economic costs associated with serious crimes, these authors share their insights and findings on topics such as families and parenting, poverty, stressful life events, social support, biology and genetics, early onset, foster care, educational programs for juvenile offenders, deterrence, and chronic offending among females. Significant attention is paid throughout to longitudinal studies of offending. Several authors also share new theoretical approaches to understanding persistence and chronicity in offending, including an expansion of the conceptualization of the etiology of self-control, a discussion of offender resistance to social control, a dynamic developmental systems approach to understanding offending in young adulthood, and the application of Wikström's situational action theory to persistent offending.

This book represents a brief treatise on the theory and research behind the concept of desistance from crime. This ever-growing field has become increasingly relevant as questions of serious issues regarding sentencing, probation and the penal system continue to go unanswered. Rocque covers the history of research on desistance from crime and provides a discussion of research and theories on the topic before looking towards the future of the application of desistance to policy. The focus of the volume is to provide an overview of the practical and theoretical developments to better understand desistance. In addition, a multidisciplinary, integrative theoretical perspective is presented, ensuring that it will be of particular interest for students and scholars of criminology and the criminal justice system.

In Developmental Theories of Crime and Delinquency, Terence P. Thornberry and his contributors show that criminal behavior is not a static human attribute, but ebbs and flows over the life course of the individual. Criminal behavior tends to follow a distinct psychological pattern. It is relatively uncommon during childhood, is initiated by most offenders during adolescence, flourishes during late adolescence and early childhood, and usually diminishes or disappears by the mid-twenties. This pattern is not characteristic of all people--some never commit crimes and others become career criminals--but it is a general description of the developmental pattern of criminal offenders. This pattern has profound implications for theories of crime and delinquency. Not only does it explain initiation into, maintenance of, and desistance from involvement in crime, it offers insight into why crime flourishes during adolescence. Traditional theories of crime and delinquency have often failed to distinguish among different phases of criminal careers. They tend to ignore developmental changes that occur across a person's life course, changes that coincide with and can explain the causes and patterns of criminal behavior. This paperback edition of the seventh volume of the distinguished series Advances in Criminological Theory moves us from static identifications of the criminal by presenting a broad range of developmental explanations of crime. Each contributor articulates a developmental or life course perspective in explaining how people become involved in delinquency and crime. Each covers a wide range of theoretical territory and reveals how a developmental perspective enhances the explanatory power of traditional theories of crime and delinquency. This volume is an invaluable tool for criminologists, sociologists, psychologists, and other professionals seeking to teach how crime and violence can be understood in our culture.

The Oxford Handbook on Developmental and Life-Course Criminology offers the first comprehensive look at these two approaches. Edited by noted authorities in the field, the Handbook aims to be the most authoritative resource on all issues germane to developmental and life-course criminologists from the world's leading scholars.

What makes a juvenile delinquent develop into an adult criminal? What defines-cognitively, developmentally, legally-the transition from juvenile to adult and what determines whether patterns of criminal behavior persist? In most US states and Western nations, legal adulthood begins at age 18. This volume focuses on the period surrounding that abrupt transition (roughly ages 15-29) and addresses what happens to offending careers during it. Edited by two leading authorities in the fields of psychology and criminology, Transitions from Juvenile Delinquency to Adult Crime examines why the period of transition is important and how it can be better understood and addressed both inside and outside of the justice system. Bringing together over thirty leading scholars from multiple disciplines in both North America and Europe, this volume asks critical questions about criminal careers and causation, and whether current legal definitions of adulthood accurately reflect actual maturation and development. The volume also addresses the current efficacy of the justice system in addressing juvenile crime and recidivism, why and how juveniles ought to be treated differently from adults, if special legal provisions should be established for young adults, and the effectiveness of crime prevention programs implemented during early childhood and adolescence. With serious scholarly analysis and practical policy proposals, Transitions from Juvenile Delinquency to Adult Crime addresses what can be done to ensure that todays juvenile delinquents do not become tomorrows adult criminals.

Adolescence is a distinct, yet transient, period of development between childhood and adulthood characterized by increased experimentation and risk-taking, a tendency to discount long-term consequences, and heightened sensitivity to peers and other social influences. A key function of adolescence is developing an integrated sense of self, including individualization, separation from parents, and personal identity. Experimentation and novelty-seeking behavior, such as alcohol and drug use, unsafe sex, and reckless driving, are thought to serve a number of adaptive functions despite their risks. Research indicates that for most youth, the period of risky experimentation does not extend beyond adolescence, ceasing as identity becomes settled with maturity. Much adolescent involvement in criminal activity is part of the normal developmental process of identity formation and most adolescents will mature out of these tendencies. Evidence of significant changes in brain structure and function during adolescence strongly suggests that these cognitive tendencies characteristic of adolescents are associated with biological immaturity of the brain and with an imbalance among developing brain systems. This imbalance model implies dual systems: one involved in cognitive and behavioral control and one involved in socio-emotional processes. Accordingly adolescents lack mature capacity for self-regulations because the brain system that influences pleasure-seeking and emotional reactivity develops more rapidly than the brain system that supports self-control. This knowledge of adolescent development has underscored important differences between adults and adolescents with direct bearing on the design and operation of the justice system, raising doubts about the core assumptions driving the criminalization of juvenile justice policy in the late decades of the 20th century. It was in this context that the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) asked the National Research Council to convene a committee to conduct a study of juvenile justice reform. The goal of Reforming Juvenile Justice: A Developmental Approach was to review recent advances in behavioral and neuroscience research and draw out the implications of this knowledge for juvenile justice reform, to assess the new generation of reform activities occurring in the United States, and to assess the performance of OJJDP in carrying out its statutory mission as well as its potential role in supporting scientifically based reform efforts.

Introduction to Criminology, Why Do They Do It?, Second Edition, by Pamela J. Schram Stephen G. Tibbetts, offers a contemporary and integrated discussion of the key theories that help us understand crime in the 21st century. With a focus on why offenders commit crimes, this bestseller skillfully engages students with real-world cases and examples to help students explore the fundamentals of criminology. To better align with how instructors actually teach this course, coverage of violent and property crimes has been integrated into the theory chapters, so students can clearly understand the application of theory to criminal behavior. Unlike other introductory criminology textbooks, the Second Edition discusses issues of diversity in each chapter and covers many contemporary topics that are not well represented in other texts, such as feminist criminology, cybercrime, hate crimes, white-collar crime, homeland security, and identity theft. Transnational comparisons regarding crime rates and the methods other countries use to deal with crime make this edition the most universal to date and a perfect companion for those wanting to learn about criminology in context.