Do Adverse Childhood Experiences Cause Criminal Behavior in Collectivist Societies? The Case of Turkey

• In Event: European Developmental and Life-course Criminology Working Group, Panel 3: The development of (juvenile) delinquency

Abstract

Although the effect of adverse childhood experiences on criminal behavior has been examined in the field of criminology for many years, it is still not clear whether these adverse childhood experiences have a direct effect on criminal behavior. Since the studies referenced in the literature mostly reflect individualistic cultures, it is necessary to understand this mechanism in collectivistic cultures. In individualistic cultures, temperament traits such as anger, hostility, moodiness, poor self-regulation, and inability or unwillingness to inhibit one's behavioral reactions to others are reported to have a stronger predictive capacity than psychopathological symptoms such as psychopathy and adverse childhood experiences. In collectivist cultures, it is reported that abuse history predicts criminal behavior in studies conducted among the convicted population, but the results obtained in the non-convicted population remain unclear. For this purpose, how adverse childhood experiences affect criminal behavior in Turkey, which reflects a collectivist culture, was examined. In this study, data were collected through self-report in a cross-sectional design with 391 individuals older than 18 years of age. The relationship between adverse childhood experiences and criminal behavior was examined in the context of the parallel multi-mediator role of participants' psychopathological symptoms. According to the results, it was found that there was no direct effect between adverse childhood experiences and criminal behavior, but hostility and interpersonal sensitivity symptoms mediated the relationship between adverse childhood experiences and criminal behavior. Based on these findings, it was concluded that the effect of adverse childhood experiences on criminal behavior in collectivist cultures, similar to the studies conducted in individualistic cultures, may not be direct, but effective in the presence of some psychopathological characteristics.

keywords: adverse childhood experiences, criminal behavior, collectivist culture

Author

• Ayhan Erbay, Istanbul Kultur University