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Biological Contributions to Crime Causation Edited by T.E. Moffitt and S.A. Mednick

Biological Factors: The document explores various biological contributions to criminal behavior, including genetics, neuropsychology, and psychophysiology

Research Evolution: It highlights the progress in biological crime research from 1982 to 1986, noting increased acceptance and reduced criticism.

Interdisciplinary Approach: Emphasizes the importance of combining biological, psychological, and social factors to understand criminal behavior.

Focus on Violent Behavior: Several chapters specifically address the biological underpinnings of violent behavior

Springer Science & Business Media, 2012, 332 pages

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By Theodor Reik

Psychology of Crime: The book explores the deep psychological forces driving criminal behavior and the unconscious need for self-punishment.

Role of Psychoanalysis: Reik applies psychoanalytic methods to understand the motives behind crimes, emphasizing the importance of unconscious guilt and the compulsion to confess.

Historical and Social Context: The book discusses the evolution of criminal investigation techniques and the psychological aspects of crime detection.

Freud's Influence: Sigmund Freud's views on capital punishment and his correspondence with Reik are included, highlighting the intersection of psychoanalysis and criminology

Books for Libraries Press, 1972, 493 pages

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By C.W. Topping

New Penology: The book discusses the concept of the new penology, which focuses on a comprehensive system of treatment and prevention, starting from childhood and continuing throughout life.

Crime Prevention: Emphasizes the importance of family counseling, community organization, and social group work in preventing crime.

Prison Reform: Contrasts old and new prison systems, highlighting the need for modern facilities, educational programs, and rehabilitation efforts.

Scientific Approach: Stresses the role of scientific research and the involvement of psychiatrists, psychologists, and social workers in understanding and treating criminal behavior..

Saddlebag Books, 1960, 82 pages

Edited by Ugljesa Zvekic

Crime and Development: The essays explore the complex relationship between crime and development, highlighting how social transformations impact crime rates and criminal justice systems.

Theoretical Frameworks: There is no universal theory linking crime and development. The essays call for more flexible and context-specific research.

Internationalization of Crime: The essays discuss how globalization and economic interdependence contribute to the spread of organized crime and corporate crime.

Formal and Informal Control: The importance of both formal and iInformal social control mechanisms in managing crime is emphasized, particularly in developing countries

United Nations International Crime and Justice Research Institute, 1990, 377 pages

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By Russil Durrant & Tony Ward

Evolutionary Criminology: The book argues for integrating evolutionary theory with criminology to enhance understanding and management of criminal behavior.

Interdisciplinary Approach: Criminology should incorporate insights from sociology, psychology, anthropology, and evolutionary biology.

Human Behavior: Understanding criminal behavior requires considering evolutionary processes, cultural history, and developmental factors.

Practical Applications: The book discusses how evolutionary theory can inform punishment, prevention, and rehabilitation strategies in criminal justice.

Academic Press, 2015, 331 pages

By Theodore N. Ferdinand

Purists vs. Empiricists: The document discusses the debate betweenPurists, who believe delinquency is rooted in social processes, andEmpiricists, who consider multiple factors, including psychological and physiological, in explaining delinquency.

Types of Typologies: It outlines three kinds of typologies:Logical,Empirical, andIdeal, each serving different functions in understanding delinquency.

Social Class and Delinquency: The document examines how different social classes, from the upper upper-class to the lower lower-class,exhibit distinct patterns of delinquent behavior.

Psychological Typologies: Various psychological typologies of delinquency are explored, including those by Alexander and Staub,Abrahamsen, and others, highlighting different psychological profiles of delinquents.

Random House, 1966, 246 pages

By  C. M. Hoeboer, · W. M. Kitselaar,  · J. F. Henrich3 E,. J. Miedzobrodzka6, · B. Wohlstetter, · E. Giebels9 E. W. Kruisbergen,· M. Kempes,  · M. Olff1,·  · G. Meynen,  · C. H. de Kogel

COVID-19 caused a great burden on the healthcare system and led to lockdown measures across the globe. These measures are likely to influence crime rates, but a comprehensive overview of the impact of COVID-19 on crime rates is lacking. The current study aimed to systematically review evidence on the impact of COVID-19 measures on crime rates across the globe. We conducted a systematic search in several databases to identify eligible studies up until 6–12-2021. A total of 46 studies were identified, reporting on 99 crime rates about robberies (n = 12), property crime (n = 15), drug crime (n = 5), fraud (n = 5), physical violence (n = 15), sexual violence (n = 11), homicides (n = 12), cybercrime (n = 3), domestic violence (n = 3), intimate partner violence (n = 14), and other crimes (n = 4). Overall, studies showed that most types of crime temporarily declined during COVID-19 measures. Homicides and cybercrime were an exception to this rule and did not show significant changes following COVID-19 restrictions. Studies on domestic violence often found increased crime rates, and this was particularly true for studies based on call data rather than crime records. Studies on intimate partner violence reported mixed results. We found an immediate impact of COVID-19 restrictions on almost all crime rates except for homicides, cybercrimes and intimate partner violence.

 Am J Crim Just 49, 274–303 (2024).

BY Kirsten Eddy, Michael Lipka, Katerina Eva Matsa, Naomi Forman-Katz, Sarah Naseer, Christopher St. Aubin and Elisa Shearer

The more news about crime that Americans receive, the more likely they are to be concerned, angry or feel personally at risk, but large numbers of people are dissatisfied with the local crime news they get and just as many people get information about crime trends from people they know as from local news outlets, a new Pew Research Center report from the Pew-Knight Initiative has found.

The report, based on a survey in January of more than 5,000 randomly selected adults, found there is little difference between Republicans and Democrats in how they consume local crime information and how concerned they are about it, but Republicans are more likely than Democrats to view violent crime as a very big problem for the country as a whole, the study found.

While most respondents expressed interest in learning the details of crimes, tips about how to stay safe, and broader patterns in local crime, few of those who were interested said it is easy to find news and information about each topic

Washington, DC: Pew Research Center 2024, 47p.

By Shawn D. Bushway, Justin T. Pickett

Although society benefits when people with criminal records are employed, employers are reluctant to hire them. Can we diminish this reluctance with direct incentives that reduce the cost of employing record-holders or that compensate for the associated risk? If so, will the beneficial effects of incentives emerge under traditional hiring, where job applicants disclose criminal history information at the application stage, and under Ban-the-Box, where they do not? To answer these questions, we conducted two preregistered experiments with a national sample of hiring decision-makers (n = 1,000). The first was a conjoint analysis where participants chose between applicants who randomly varied on eight attributes, including criminal record (n = 13,998 choices). It corresponded to traditional hiring, where applicants’ criminal records are available at the outset. The second experiment involved a series of picture-based factorial vignettes depicting tentatively hired employees later discovered to have records (n = 3,989 decisions). It approximated Ban-the-Box. In both experiments, a $2,400 tax credit and $25,000 insurance against losses from employee dishonesty reduced participants’ reluctance to hire record-holders. Rehabilitation certificates also had beneficial effects under Ban-the-Box.

Policy implications

Across two experiments, we found that a $2,400 tax credit and $25,000 insurance both reduced participants’ reluctance to hire record-holders; they did so under traditional hiring and Ban-the-Box, and they did so regardless of whether applicants had misdemeanor or felony convictions. The clear policy implication is that employers should receive both incentives. Two federal programs, the Work Opportunity Tax Credit and the Federal Bonding Program, currently offer similar incentives, but neither program is used widely. Our findings indicate that steps should be taken to increase their use and to expand them. Because rehabilitation certificates were also helpful for getting record-holders hired, steps should be taken to increase their use as well.

Criminology & Public Policy, 1–28. 2024. https://doi.org/10.1111/1745-9133.12681

By U.S. Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs

The First Step Act of 2018 (FSA) mandated the development and implementation of a risk and needs assessment system in the Federal Bureau of Prisons (FBOP). The FSA also required that the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) review, validate, and publicly release the risk and needs assessment system on an annual basis. The National Institute of Justice (NIJ) contracted with Dr. Rhys Hester and Dr. Ryan Labrecque as consultants for the annual review and revalidation of the Prisoner Assessment Tool Targeting Estimated Risk and Needs (PATTERN). This document is the fourth review and revalidation report, following USDOJ (2021a), USDOJ (2021b), and USDOJ (2023). The previous review and revalidation reports included FBOP release cohorts from fiscal year (FY) 2009 through FY 2018. The current report analyzes a subsequent cohort of FY 2019 FBOP releasees and evaluates PATTERN for its predictive accuracy, dynamic validity, and racial and ethnic neutrality, as mandated by the FSA. This study analyzes one-, two-, and three-year recidivism outcomes, assesses what proportions of change in risk scores and levels are influenced by the current age item, and provides additional descriptive information on individual items, risk scores and levels, and outcomes by race and ethnic group. Finally, this report provides updates on the actions taken by NIJ and DOJ in the past year and the ongoing efforts to review and improve PATTERN. The FY 2019 cohort study finds that PATTERN remains a strong and valid predictor of general and violent recidivism at the one-, two-, and three-year follow-up periods, with Area Under the Curve (AUC) statistics ranging from .745 to .776. Comparisons of recidivism rates by risk level category (RLC) and predictive value analyses by risk level grouping also continue to indicate that such risk level designations provide meaningful distinctions of recidivism risk. In addition, individuals can change their risk scores and levels during confinement beyond mere age effects. Those who reduced their RLC from first to last assessment were shown to have the lowest recidivism rates, followed by those who maintained the same risk level and those with a higher risk level, respectively. While the findings continue to indicate PATTERN’s accuracy across the five racial and ethnic groups analyzed, there remains evidence that the instruments predict differently across those groups, including overprediction of risk of Black, Hispanic, and Asian males and females, relative to White individuals, on the general recidivism tools.

Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs 2024. 36p.

By Sally M. Evans, Bethany A. Jones, Daragh T. McDermott

Literature regarding trans and gender diverse (TGD) prisoners’ experiences of prison custody is limited. Reviewing international literature enables a better understanding of these experiences and how effectively TGD policies are implemented. This systematic review employed PRISMA and ENTREQ guidelines to enhance transparency in reporting the synthesis of qualitative and mixed-methods research. Seventeen papers were included and through meta-ethnographic synthesis three overarching themes emerged: structural, interpersonal and intrapersonal. Recommendations include reducing reliance on survival strategies by TGD prisoners through implementation of policies which meet TGD prisoners’ needs and to enabling better informed decision making regarding housing. Further research into lived experiences would allow for a better understanding of what currently works, how services could be improved, and identify potential training needs

Howard Journal of Crime and Justice, Volume63, Issue3, September 2024, Pages 321-349

By Harry Annison and Kate Paradine

In this article we sketch a vision that might guide academic and third sector collaboration. We do so by drawing on a project that involved collaboration with a range of stakeholders, in order to stimulate ongoing discussion about how academics and the third sector might work together to seek positive change. Our findings show that there are keenly felt challenges, but also a sense of resilient optimism. A key finding among our stakeholders was a sense that there is an absence of an overarching shared vision, which was experienced by many of our respondents as consequential. Therefore, in the spirit of constructive provocation we set out such a vision, which was collaboratively developed with our respondents: opening a dialogue, rather than providing a conclusive position

Howard Journal of Crime and Justice, Volume63, Issue3, September 2024, Pages 286-303

By Simon A. Cole Maurice Possley Ken Otterbourg Jessica Weinstock Paredes , Barbara O’Brien, Meghan Cousino, & Samuel R. Gross,

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

A. THE CASES

• This report analyzes 151 cases in which defendants were exonerated between 1989 and 2023 in the United States and medicolegal death investigation (“death investigation” for short) contributed to the false conviction.

• The 151 exonerees lost a total of 1,837 years in prison, an average of 12.2 years per exoneree. That is less than the average of 14.6 years for exonerees convicted of comparable crimes but for whom death investigation did not contribute to the false conviction.

B. CASE CHARACTERISTICS

• Not surprisingly, 140 (93%) of the 151 cases in which death investigation contributed to the false conviction were homicides. However, death investigators did contribute to eleven non-homicide cases, all involving abuse of vulnerable people: children or dependent adults. Eight of these eleven were cases involving the Shaken Baby Syndrome (SBS) diagnosis, in which the top charge was child abuse.

• In more than one-third of the cases, the death investigation evidence consisted of a claim that the medical evidence was consistent with the prosecution’s theory of the crime, e.g., that the victim’s wounds were consistent with a weapon linked to the defendant.

• In another third of the cases the death investigation evidence concerned the cause of death.

• Manner of death and time of death evidence contributed to fewer cases.

C. DEMOGRAPHICS

• Women were overrepresented among the defendants for whom the death investigation contributed to their false conviction. Thirty-nine (26%) of the defendants in the 151 cases were female, more than three times the 8% of all exonerees who were female. Only around 5% of exonerees convicted of comparable crimes were female.-

• Relatedly, cases involving child victims were particularly vulnerable to contributions by death investigation. Nearly half (47%) of the 151 cases involved child victims. That compares to only 19% of all non-death-investigation exonerations and 34% of non-death-investigation exonerations for comparable crimes.

• Although concerns have been raised about racial bias in death investigation, the exonerees in death investigation exoneration cases were whiter than exonerees in general. One third of death investigation exonerees were Black compared to 53% of all exonerees. Similarly, 8% of death investigation exonerees were Hispanic, compared to 12% of all exonerees. The higher representation of whites diminishes somewhat if women are removed from the analysis.

D. DEATH INVESTIGATION SYSTEMS

• The United States has a patchwork death investigation system with variations among and within states. The two primary types are medical examiner and coroner systems. Most, but not all, experts perceive medical examiner systems to be superior and call for them to replace coroner systems. We did not find that more false convictions occurred under coroner systems. Instead, false convictions generally occurred in proportion to where more people live: their occurrence correlated with those counties’ and states’ proportions of the US population.

• Nor did we find that more false convictions occurred in systems with elected (rather than appointed) coroners and death investigators.

• In 22% of cases, the death investigation office that contributed to the false conviction was accredited by the National Association of Medical Examiners (NAME). Only 17% of US death investigation facilities are accredited.

E. QUALIFICATIONS OF DEATH INVESTIGATORS

• The highest qualification for death investigators in the US is generally considered to be board certification in the subspecialty of forensic pathology by the American Board of Pathology. However, for decades there have not been enough board-certified pathologists in the US to meet the need for death investigation services and autopsies. Therefore, many death investigations and autopsies are performed by less qualified personnel, such as pathologists without board certification, physicians with specialties other than pathology, and even, in some cases, non-physicians such as funeral directors. We did not find that most false convictions occurred in cases with underqualified death investigators. In fact, board-certified forensic pathologists contributed to 61% (92) of the 151 cases in this study.

National Registry of Exonerations (2024), 90p

By John P. Sullivan, Nathan P. Jones 

This chapter covers the early history of bandits including the role of bandits in revolution (e.g., Pancho Villa), the rise of urban guerrillas (e.g., Che Guevara and the Cuban Revolution, Carlos Marighella (the Minimanual of the Urban Guerrilla)) in Brazil and the Tupamaros in Uruguay, and the transition from ideological revolt to the criminal insurgency. The later transition will focus on the transition to crime by the FARC and ELN in Colombia succeeded by Bacrim in Colombia, mega-gangs in Venezuela, and Brazilian gangs (i.e., The Commando Vermelho and Primeiro Comando da Capital), followed by the rise of a criminal insurgency waged by territorial (third-generation) gangs (including maras such as MS-13 and Barrio 18 in Central America) and criminal cartels. The nexus between prison gangs and criminal gangs and the emergence of criminal enclaves (such as the Triple Frontier and Ciudad del Este) will be explored. A common thread will be a discussion of crime and social banditry (Hobsbawm) as mechanisms of revolt. Urban crime and instability and the emergence of crime wars and criminal insurgency will be discussed in context of state transition, globalization, and the rise of transnational organized crime.

London; New York: Routledge, 2021, 28p.

By Matthew J. Lindquist,  Eleonora Patacchin, Michael Vlassopoulos., Yves Zenou 

We study spillover effects within co-offending networks by leveraging the deaths of co-offenders for causal identification. Our results demonstrate that the death of a co-offender significantly reduces the criminal activities of other network members. We observe a decaying pattern in the magnitude of these spillover effects: individuals directly linked to a deceased offender experience the most significant impact, followed by those two steps away, and then those three steps away. Moreover, we find that the death of a more central co-offender leads to a larger reduction in aggregate crime. We also provide evidence consistent with a new theoretical prediction suggesting that the loss of a co-offender shrinks the future information set of offenders, altering their perceptions of the probability of being convicted and consequently affecting their criminal behavior. Our findings highlight the importance of understanding spillover for policymakers seeking to develop more effective strategies for crime prevention.  

  Bonn:: Institute of Labor Economics - IZA, 2024.

By Janique Kroese, Wim Bernasco, Aart C. Liefbroer, Jan Rouwendal

Studies investigating the role of single-parent families in adolescent delinquency have seldom differentiated between types of single-parent families. Furthermore, they have typically assumed that parental disruption is a discrete event marking an abrupt change between dual-parenthood and single-parenthood. Using Dutch longitudinal population register data, we estimated fixed-effects panel models to assess (1) whether the event of parental disruption, either by parental separation or by parental death, increases subsequent adolescent delinquency and (2) whether parental disruption, either by parental separation or by parental death, has anticipatory, immediate, or delayed effects on adolescent delinquency. Our results showed that both parental separation and parental death seem to boost adolescent delinquency, and we found no difference between these types of single-parent families. However, when distinguishing between anticipatory, short-term, and long-term effects, we found a short-term increase in adolescent delinquency after a parental separation and an anticipatory reduction in adolescent delinquency before a parental death. Future research should pay more attention to diversity in the composition of single parent families, as well as to the anticipatory, short-term, and long-term consequences.

Journal of Developmental and Life-Course Criminology (2024) 10:288–308

By Miguel Basto-Pereira, David P. Farrington, Laura Maciel

This work aims to investigate the role of sequences of risk factors from childhood to young adulthood in predicting subsequent criminal convictions. This study uses the Cambridge Study in Delinquent Development (CSDD) dataset, a prospective longitudinal research study that followed 411 males from South London from the age of 8 to 61 years. Temporal sequences of risk factors at ages 8–10, 12–14, and 16–18 were analyzed as predictors of subsequent criminal convictions up to the age of 61. Risk factors related to poverty, parenting problems, and children’s risk-taking predisposition at ages 8–10 emerged as prevalent starting points for the most highly predictive developmental sequences leading to convictions. The risk of a criminal conviction significantly increased if these risk factors were followed by low IQ scores or association with delinquent friends at ages 12–14, and by school and professional problems or drug addiction during late adolescence (ages 16–18). At each developmental stage, specific risk factors intricately combine to form chains of risk during development, subsequently predicting criminal convictions. A trajectory-of-risk-need-responsivity approach that identifies and breaks chains of risk factors that generate and enhance favorable conditions for criminal convictions is discussed.

Journal of Developmental and Life-Course Criminology (2024) 10:242–264

By Simon D. Venema, Marieke Haan, Eric Blaauw, René Veenstra

Little is known about the conditions under which paternal incarceration is harmful to children and the mechanisms that explain this. This study addressed the family relationship context in the associations between paternal incarceration and adolescents' internalizing and externalizing problem behaviors. Using data from the Future of Families and Child Wellbeing Study, a moderated mediation model was specified where paternal incarceration predicted adolescents’ internalizing and externalizing problem behaviors through family relationship quality, and where the mediating role of family relationship quality was moderated by pre-incarceration family relationship characteristics. Using latent profile analyses, three pre-incarceration family clusters were identified (“Cohesive”; “Fragmented”; “Disharmonious”). Analyses indicated that the association between paternal incarceration and family relationship quality differed across pre-incarceration family clusters and that decreased father mother relationship quality mediated the negative association between paternal incarceration and adolescents’ internalizing and externalizing problem behaviors among “Cohesive” and “Fragmented”, but not among “Disharmonious” family clusters. The findings suggest that adolescents with more harmonious pre-incarceration family relationships are most vulnerable to the negative consequences of paternal incarceration. The study demonstrates the need to consider the family relationship context to understand the intergenerational consequences of incarceration.

Journal of Developmental and Life-Course Criminology (2024) 10:213–241

By Corrie Williams, Tara Renae McGee, Shannon Walding, Christine E. W. Bond

While conduct problem behaviour initiated in early childhood often escalates in frequency and seriousness through adolescence, a notable deceleration is typically seen by mid-adolescence. It has been hypothesised that prosocial behaviour, characterised by acts like sharing and comforting, may play a role in this deceleration. However, there is a distinct gap in the current literature when it comes to understanding the temporal dynamics between the acceleration of prosocial behaviours and the deceleration of conduct problem behaviour. This study seeks to bridge this gap. Using a General Cross-Lagged Panel Model (GCLM) and data from the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children (LSAC), we investigated temporal dynamics and sequence of how the acceleration of prosocial behaviour influences the deceleration of conduct problem behaviour between ages 4 and 15. Results indicate that increases in prosocial behaviour facilitate the deceleration of conduct problem behaviour, with increases in prosocial behaviour preceding decreases in conduct problem behaviour. Further, we show a cumulative effect of increases in prosocial behaviour on decreases in conduct problem behaviour over time. This knowledge provides a foundation for understanding how timely prevention and intervention strategies that include the mechanisms for increasing prosocial behaviour may interrupt the con duct problem behaviour trajectories of children and adolescents.

Journal of Developmental and Life-Course Criminology (2024) 10:169–192

By The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS),

Substance use and mental health issues have significant impacts on individuals, families, communities, and societies. The National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH), conducted annually by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), provides nationally representative data on the use of tobacco, alcohol, and other substances including illicit drugs; substance use disorders; receipt of substance use treatment; mental health issues; and receipt of mental health treatment among the civilian, noninstitutionalized population aged 12 or older in the United States. NSDUH estimates allow researchers, clinicians, policymakers, and the general public to better understand and improve the nation’s behavioral health. SAMHSA is steadfast in its efforts to advance the health of the nation while also promoting equity. Therefore, this report, based on 2023 NSDUH data, contains findings on key substance use and mental health indicators in the United States by race or ethnicity. The 2021 to 2023 NSDUHs used multimode data collection, in which respondents completed the survey in person or via the web. Methodological investigations led to the conclusion that estimates based on multimode data collection in 2021 and subsequent years are not comparable with estimates from 2020 or prior years. Although estimates from 2021 to 2023 can be compared,6 this report presents NSDUH estimates from 2023 only. Results from the 2023 National Survey on Drug Use and Health: Detailed Tables show comprehensive estimates related to substance use and mental health for 2022 and 2023. The 2023 Companion Infographic Report: Results from the 2021, 2022, and 2023 National Surveys on Drug Use and Health shows comparisons of selected estimates from 2021 to 2023. Behavioral Health by Race and Ethnicity: Results from the 2021-2023 National Surveys on Drug Use and Health shows comparisons of selected estimates for racial or ethnic groups using pooled data from the 2021 to 2023 NSDUHs to increase the precision of estimates. Survey Background NSDUH is an annual survey sponsored by SAMHSA within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). NSDUH covers residents of households and people in noninstitutional group settings (e.g., shelters, boarding houses, college dormitories, migratory workers’ camps, halfway houses). The survey excludes people with no fixed address (e.g., people who are homeless and not in shelters), military personnel on active duty, and residents of institutional group settings, such as jails, nursing homes, mental health institutions, and long-term care hospitals.

Washington, DC: Center for Behavioral Health Statistics and Quality, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.