NCJ Number
238866
Journal
Journal of Criminal Justice Volume: 40 Issue: 3 Dated: May/June 2012 Pages: 187-193
Date Published
June 2012
Length
7 pages
Annotation
This study examined whether or not General Strain Theory (GST) can be used to explain recidivism among registered sex offenders.
Abstract
Agnew, who originally proposed GST as an explanation for criminal behavior, identified three categories of strain that stimulate negative emotions or affects, which in turn lead to crime or delinquency due to maladaptive coping strategies. The three categories of strain are the loss of positive stimuli, the imposition of negative stimuli, and the inability to achieve one's goals. These strains are believed to result in crime because they elicit negative emotions. Since criminologists view the registration and community notification as a source of stress/strain for sex offenders, with the potential for stimulating negative emotions, some have theorized that such a system may have the unintended effect of increasing reoffending. The findings of the current study support this hypothesis when overall recidivism (not just sex offending) and all forms of general recidivism are measured; the effect of strain on sexual recidivism, however, was small, suggesting that negative emotions as a result of strain do not result in sexual reoffending. The authors speculate that this finding may be due to the failure to consider various forms of life stress that were not measured in the current study; it measured only strain related to the cumulative negative consequences experienced from being on the sex offender registry. The study mailed surveys to 3,506 sex offenders (939 in Nebraska, 1,850 in Kansas, and 717 in Montana). Questions related to strain associated with registration and community notification (anger, depression, and criminal behavior). OLS regression was used to predict overall recidivism, as well as recidivism that involved sex, violent, drug, and property offenses. 4 tables, 57 references, and appended study questionnaire