Criminogenic contexts of young offenders: With whom, when and where

• In Event: Social Contexts and Differential Expression of Crime Propensities in Relation to Gender, Adjudication, Problematic Substance Use, and Political Extremism

Abstract

Situational Action Theory asserts that taking into consideration the interaction between the person’s characteristics and criminogenic exposure is important in explaining crime causation. With the use of the space-time budget (STB) interview, prior research has underlined the explanatory potential of this theory for non-adjudicated and adjudicated teens and young adults. Thus, in order to reduce recidivism among adjudicated young offenders, we need to identify which contexts are the most criminogenic and for whom. We must go beyond the simple addition of a crime propensity, presence of antisocial peers and idle lifestyle. To do so, a sample of 100 adjudicated young offenders aged between 14 and 19 years were given a STB and other questionnaires. Like non-adjudicated teens, unstructured and unsupervised peer-oriented activities are the most criminogenic contexts for adjudicated young offenders. However, even if a third of their awake time is in this context, they do not offend all the time. The social (presence of delinquent influences), temporal (time of day) and geographical (city area) characteristics of those hours will be examined to identify the most criminogenic ones. We will also examine the interaction of these contexts with young offenders’ characteristics in explaining crime.

Authors

• Geneviève Parent, University of Montreal

• Jean-Pierre Guay, University of Montreal

• Catherine Pineau-Villeneuve, University of Montreal