‘Kids Will Do That to You’: At-risk Fathers Managing the Risks of Crime During the Transition to Adulthood

• In Event: Parenting, Parental Relationships, and Life-Course Outcomes

Abstract

Life course perspectives predict that the transition to fatherhood facilitates desistance from crime, particularly because fatherhood can increase one’s stake in conformity. The empirical relationship between fatherhood and crime is unclear, however. One reason fathers might persist rather than desist from crime is that costs of income-generating crime fail to outweigh its benefits. This might be especially salient for formerly-sanctioned men who have firsthand experience with legal costs of crime and who might also lack access to adequate legal employment to meet the needs of their children. Drawing from in-depth, semi-structured interviews with 17 formerly sanctioned fathers, ages 21 to 25, this study builds on Fader’s (2016) recent work by examining how parenthood relates to risk perceptions and the employment of risk management strategies.

Author

• Sarah Boonstoppel, North Dakota State University