Examining the Impact of Mental Illness and Social Bonds on Offending

• In Event: Mental Disorder and Risk of Offending

Abstract

Past research has established that social bonds, such as those generated by employment (Laub and Sampson, 2003) and marriage (Laub, Nagin, and Sampson, 1998), can regulate behavior and ultimately, decrease offending. However, a vast majority of this research uses general population samples, which do not account for the high rates of mental illness among offenders. This has important implications as individuals may be less likely to experience social bonds when mentally ill, or may not be affected by those bonds in the same way as they would have been during times of mental health. This study uses the Pathways to Desistence data to examine the link between mental illness and offending, mental illness and several events that commonly generate social bonds, and whether those events mediate the effect of mental illness on offending. Results show that mental illness does indeed predict offending, particularly violent offending. However, mental illness does not impact the likelihood of experiencing bond generating events such as employment, education, and being in a relationship, indicating a direct relationship between mental illness and offending. This relationship is driven by certain types of disorders. Policy implications are discussed.

Author

• Brittany Jaecques, University of Missouri- St. Louis