From Early Development to Adolescent Offending: The Influence of Cognitive and Non-Cognitive Abilities

• In Event: Cognitive capacities and criminal behaviour

Abstract

This paper examines the relationship between child development and the probability of engaging in offending behaviour during adolescence. I conduct a factor analysis on early childhood assessments, identifying several key developmental dimensions. After adjusting for confounding variables, I find significant associations between poor child development and adolescent offending. Developmental issues related to cognitive abilities are largely mediated by school-related experiences, such as attendance and academic performance. However, poor non-cognitive abilities continue to show a strong association with offending behaviour, even after accounting for these mediating factors. Lastly, I examine the influence of schools and contextual factors, with results remaining robust when accounting for group-level variability.

Author

• Paul Garcia, University Of Essex