Does Being Fit and Healthy Make a More Successful Offender?

• In Event: Socioeconomic Status and Inequality Effects on Crime

Abstract

This study explores the fact that physically fit and healthy offenders may be more adept at evading detection. Drawing on data from the first three waves of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health), I test the hypothesis proposed by Mears and Stafford (2022) that criminological research often focuses primarily on “unsuccessful” offenders because they are the ones more likely to be apprehended. I assess self-reported offenders’ overall fitness, health, and academic performance in physical education to determine whether these factors predict future contact with law enforcement. Specific attention is paid to crimes and delinquent acts requiring a certain degree of physical ability to commit and avoid capture. The findings suggest a potential association between worse health and lower physical education grades and subsequent arrests or police contacts among offenders who self-report such behaviors.

Author

• Vladimir Kudryavtsev, Florida State University