NCJ Number
231897
Journal
Journal of Quantitative Criminology Volume: 26 Issue: 3 Dated: September 2010 Pages: 371-389
Date Published
September 2010
Length
19 pages
Annotation
This paper investigates the question to what extent static and dynamic theories explain the relation between criminal careers of fathers and their children.
Abstract
Criminal behavior of parents substantially affects the criminal behavior of children. Little is known, however, about how crime is transmitted from one generation to the next. In order to test two possible explanations against each other, the authors pose the question whether the timing of the criminal acts of fathers is important for children's chances of committing crime. Static theories predict that it is the number of delinquent acts performed by fathers that is important, and that the particular timing does not affect the child's chance of committing crime. Dynamic theories state that the timing is important, and children have a greater chance of committing crime in the period after fathers have committed delinquent acts. Results show that the total number of convictions of a father is indeed very important, but also the exact timing is key to understanding intergenerational transmission of crime. In the year a father is convicted the chance his child is also convicted increases substantially and it decays in subsequent years. This decay takes longer the more crimes the father has committed. The results show that some of the assumptions of the static theories at least need to be adjusted. Tables, figure, and references (Published Abstract)