CONVICTION RECORDS OF FATHERS AND SON COMPARED

• NCJ Number: 61460
• Journal: British Journal of Criminology Volume: 19 Issue: 4 Dated: (APRIL 1979) Pages: 120-133
• Author(s): S G OSBORN; D J WEST
• Date Published: 1979
• Length: 14 pages
• Sponsoring Agency: Great Britain Home Office
• Corporate Author: Stevens and Sons
• Publication Format: Article
• Language: English
• Country: United Kingdom

Annotation

DATA FROM THE CAMBRIDGE, ENGLAND, STUDY IN DELINQUENT DEVELOPMENT AND THE LONDON CRIMINAL RECORD OFFICE WERE USED TO EXAMINE THE REASONS FOR THE CORRELATION BETWEEN CONVICTION RECORDS OF FATHERS AND SONS.

Abstract

THE SAMPLE CONSISTED OF 383 SONS, WHOSE CRIMINAL RECORDS WERE FOLLOWED TO THEIR 23RD BIRTHDAYS. ALL WERE RESIDENTS OF A WORKING-CLASS AREA OF LONDON. FATHERS' EARLY CONVICTION RECORDS WERE BELIEVED TO BE INCOMPLETE FOR A VARIETY OF REASONS; SONS' RECORDS WERE BELIEVED TO BE COMPLETE. RESULTS SHOW THAT NEARLY TWICE AS MANY CONVICTED FATHERS (51 PERCENT OF 102) HAD A DELINQUENT SON. OF THE 281 UNCONVICTED FATHERS, 23.8 PERCENT HAD A DELINQUENT SON IN THE SAMPLE. THREE TIMES AS MANY CONVICTED FATHERS HAD RECIDIVIST SONS. OVER HALF THE RECORDED CONVICTIONS CAME FROM 6.3 PERCENT OF THE SONS IN THE SAMPLE. CRIMINAL FATHERS WERE FOUR TIMES AS LIKELY AS NONCRIMINAL FATHERS TO HAVE A SON IN THIS SMALL MINORITY. REPEATED AND RECENT OFFENSES AMONG FATHERS HAD AN ESPECIALLY STRONG INFLUENCE ON THE LIKELIHOOD OF THE SON'S DELINQUENCY. MOTHERS' CRIMINALITY APPEARED TO HAVE AS GREAT AN EFFECT ON SONS AS DID THE FATHERS' CRIMINALITY. TYPES OF OFFENSES COMMITTED BY THE FATHERS DID NOT APPEAR TO INFLUENCE THE PROBABILITY OF DELINQUENCY IN THE SON OR TYPES OF OFFENSES THE SON COMMITTED. SONS WERE MORE LIKELY, HOWEVER, TO BE CONVICTED FOR AGGRESSIVE OR DRUG OFFENSES THAN WERE FATHERS. PARENTAL CRIMINALITY WAS OFTEN LINKED WITH OTHER FACTORS INDICATING SOCIAL DEPRIVATION, BUT THESE FACTORS ALONE DID NOT SIGNIFICANTLY INFLUENCE SONS' CRIMINALITY. NO PATERNAL ENCOURAGEMENT OF CRIMINALITY WAS FOUND. SONS WHO BECAME DELINQUENT AT OR AFTER AGE 18 WERE NO MORE LIKELY THAN NONDELINQUENTS TO HAVE A CRIMINAL FATHER. RESULTS SUGGEST THAT A LABELING PROCESS, AND ENVIRONMENTAL AND GENETIC INFLUENCES, MAY HAVE PREDISPOSED SONS TO DELINQUENCY. TABLES AND A BIBLIOGRAPHY ARE INCLUDED. (CFW)