Generativity as a Pathway to Desistance in Contexts of Persistent Violence

• In Event: 21010 - Social Context, Family, and Crime

Abstract

Desistance from crime is widely recognized as a normative process for most offenders, yet this perspective often downplays the considerable obstacles faced by individuals attempting to desist in environments marked by persistent violence. While existing research emphasizes structural barriers—such as limited employment opportunities, punitive justice responses, and inadequate social services—it largely overlooks the role of local frictions, including familial ties, constrained mobility, and the presence of former adversaries. This paper extends desistance theories by centering generativity—the act of giving back to one’s community—as a crucial mechanism that enables individuals to overcome these localized barriers and reconfigure their social worlds.

Drawing on immersive interviews and ethnographic observations with 99 violence-involved young men navigating the desistance process, we find that generativity is not only a recurring theme but also functions as a counterforce to prior violent engagement. Where violence severed social ties and depersonalized community members, generative acts—ranging from mentoring youth to reviving communal traditions—serve as restorative mechanisms that reinforce desistance. Moreover, our findings suggest that desistance is not merely an individual transformation but a socially-embedded process, shaped by one’s awareness of their role in a broader social network. By reframing desistance as relational rather than solely individual, we highlight how the contagion-like spread of violence may have an inverse counterpart in the diffusion of generative commitments, offering a community-sustaining force for long-term stability.

Authors

• Bethany Elston, University of Chicago

• Gianni Pacheco, University of Chicago

• Megan Kang, Princeton University

• Kathryn J. Edin, Princeton University