Criminal Trajectories Research Articles

The Dynamics of Internet Sexual Solicitation: Examining the Criminal Careers of Online Groomers

ABSTRACT The criminal career approach has been widely employed in the context of sexual delinquency, contributing significantly to our understanding of the criminal activities of sex offenders. To date, no studies have examined the criminal trajectories of online groomers within the framework of a criminal career analysis. To address this gap, the primary objective of this paper is to analyze this group’s criminal trajectories to expand our knowledge on participation, frequency, duration, seriousness, and versatility. To achieve this, an LPA was thus conducted using a sample of 1201 online groomers. The results support the existence of multiple distinct trajectories followed by individuals who engage in online sexual solicitation of minors, revealing the presence of four distinctive profiles: one-timer groomers, versatile and late groomers, specialist sex offender groomers, and polymorphous and prolific groomers. The profiles differ based on the number and types of offenses committed, the duration of their criminal involvement, and the diversity of their criminal activities.

One Size Doesn’t Fit All: An Exploratory Typological Approach to Understanding Criminal Career Heterogeneity in Intimate Partner Homicide

Approximately one in seven homicides globally is committed by a partner within an intimate relationship. While criminology research on intimate partner homicide (IPH) perpetrators is extensive, their interactions with law enforcement remain underexplored. This study examines the criminal trajectories of IPH perpetrators to ascertain whether they exhibit common or diverse patterns. Utilizing data from Quebec’s official criminal events database, the study analyzes variables concerning the criminal histories of 1,780 individuals involved in attempted or completed IPH through latent profile analysis. Findings indicate five distinct profiles among IPH perpetrators: one-time, low-volume intimate partner violence (IPV), moderate-volume IPV, high-volume violence, and high-volume polymorphous perpetrators. The external validity of these profiles is assessed using additional criminal career, contextual, and situational variables. Implications for the justice system’s practices and challenges are also discussed.

Unveiling Complexity: Factors Influencing Women’s Involvement in Crime

This research explores various elements that impact and shape women’s the participation of women in criminal activities. Despite the traditional perception that it is men who mainly commit crimes, in recent years, the active role of women in various legal acts has been increasingly recognized. This paper aims to unfold the complex web of influences that shape women’s pathways to criminal behavior, focusing on both individual and social factors. The study focuses on examining socio-economic factors that have a central influence on women’s involvement in crime. Economic inequalities, limited job opportunities and financial struggles often push women into illegal activities to survive or strengthen their economic influences. Additionally, the paper focusses on the effects of educational background, employment status, and income level on women’s susceptibility to criminal temptations, emphasizing the relationship between economic stability and criminal involvement. Moving towards economic dimensions, this study also examines the psychological factors that contribute to women’s participation in crime. Psychological vulnerabilities resulting from trauma, abuse, mental health disorders and substance abuse create pathways to crime. The research paper also examines the impact of adverse childhood experiences, mental health challenges, and criminal trajectories, shedding light on the co-relation between psychological well-being and criminal propensities. Further, familial and social influences are explored to unfold their role in shaping women’s criminal trajectories. Family dysfunction, exposure to criminal role models, and peer pressure can significantly influence an individual’s likelihood of being engaged in criminal activities. This study explores the complexities of family structures, social networks and community environments and highlights their profound influence on the development of women’s perceptions, choices and behaviors related to crime. Moreover, this study also analyzes legal and systematic factors and emphasizes how institutional biases, discriminatory practices and inadequate support systems influence women’s involvement in crime. The paper critically assesses the role of criminal justice systems, law enforcement practices, and access to legal resources in preventing or promoting women’s criminal behavior. Through a combined analysis of these various factors affecting women’s criminality, the study aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of the reasons that affect the women’s involvement in criminal activities. By elucidating these complex factors, policymakers, practitioners, and stakeholders, can develop more targeted interventions, support systems and policies that address the root causes women’s criminal behavior and reduce the risks associated with their involvement in crime.

Meaningful bonds and criminal trajectories in adolescents: The intervention experience of expert professionals

Young offenders (YO) have undergone a series of experiences throughout their lives that influence their way of relating to others. Through the report of nine expert professionals, this qualitative study seeks the characterization of different types of bonds established by 20 adolescents between the ages of 15 and 22 admitted to Special Probation Programs (SPP) in the region of La Araucanía, Chile. Through the design of cases by criteria, two categories of sex and criminal trajectory defined by the Multidimensional Model of Differentiated Intervention (MMIDA) are constructed from an analytical-associative perspective. The method of analysis selected for the treatment of the data was the Weighted Hierarchical Content Analysis, which allowed its characterization, frequency distribution, and comparison. As main results, it is found that YOs, from the report of expert interveners, tend to establish meaningful bonds with their environment, through which they satisfy their affective and help needs. These bonds allow them to channel their adaptive or maladaptive potential. The quality of these established bonds differs depending on the criminal trajectory regardless of the sex of the young person, presenting high consistency as described by the MMIDA model for each of the five trajectories. When making the comparison between the sexes, it was found that women present a higher content density in the categories of damaged bonds, mainly referring to unhealthy relationships and altered development.

Violent Partners or a Specific Class of Offenders? A Criminal Career Approach to Understanding Men Involved in Intimate Partner Sexual Violence.

The current study investigates the criminal career of individuals involved in intimate partner sexual violence (IPSV). Specifically, the goal is to determine whether men who engage in IPSV can be distinguished from those who engage in intimate partner non sexual violence (IPNSV) only and whether criminal trajectories in the resulting subgroup are heterogeneous. The sample comes from a Canadian database including a total of 12,458 individuals involved in IPSV and 32,474 individuals involved in IPNSV). Bivariate and multivariate analyses are performed to examine the differences in the two groups while latent profile analysis allows examining the heterogeneity of characteristics of men who engaged in IPSV. Findings indicate that the criminal career of men who engage in IPSV follows a pattern that is clearly distinct from that of men who engage in IPNSV only and is more specialized in terms of sexual offenses. Results also show that the criminal trajectories followed by the men who engage in IPSV are heterogeneous. Four profiles of different trajectories were identified. Both theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

Predicting new hackers’ criminal careers: A group-based trajectory approach

The current study employs group-based trajectory modeling to assess the longitudinal attack patterns of new hackers involved in website defacement. Specifically, we track the activity of 241 emergent hackers for one year following their first verified website defacement. In doing so, we find four distinct criminal trajectories: low threat (29.0%), naturally desisting (26.5%), increasingly prolific (22.3%), and persistent threat (22.1%). Hackers classified as low threats engage in few defacements, whereas persistent threats engage in high-frequency attacks. Those labeled as naturally desisting begin their careers with velocity but become less prolific with time. Conversely, those classified as increasingly prolific engage in more attacks as they advance in their criminal careers. Using a series of regression models, we find that digital artifacts and open-source intelligence are predictive of group involvement. The findings presented in this study contribute to our theoretical understanding of the developmental trajectories of hackers, while providing valuable insights in fostering targeted intervention strategies aimed at effectively mitigating and preventing cyber-attacks.

Does Stable Employment after Prison Reduce Recidivism Irrespective of Prior Employment and Offending?

Sampson and Laub’s (1990, 1993) life course theory posits that stable employment can rehabilitate a criminal trajectory, irrespective of criminal history. Others contend that post-prison employment could be attributable to pre-prison patterns. These hypotheses have not been fully evaluated. Drawing on a random sample of 1,607 restored citizens in Ohio, this paper analyzes matched administrative and unemployment insurance (UI) data across three-year pre- and post-prison periods and provides new evidence that employment stability reduces recidivism irrespective of pre-prison employment stability or extensive criminal history. Individuals we label “employment gainers” lacked stable employment before prison, comprise 41% of the stably employed after prison, with recidivism levels indistinguishable from those with stable employment in both periods. Reductions in recidivism associated with employment stability are consistent across levels of criminal history. Our results thus carve a clearer vision of the possibilities for redemption among those with marginal employment histories and extensive criminal histories.

Book Review: Criminal Trajectories: A developmental perspective by D. M. Day & M. Wiesner

Book Review: <i>Criminal Trajectories: A developmental perspective</i> by D. M. Day &amp; M. Wiesner

Offending Trajectories in Violent Offenders: Criminal History and Early Life Risk Factors.

The understanding of offending, and thus its possible prevention, is expanded through longitudinal studies on criminal trajectories depicting early life risk factors. This longitudinal study aimed to explore criminal trajectories, criminal histories, and early life risk factors in a cohort of violent offenders. A Swedish nationally representative cohort of male violent offenders (n = 266), clinically assessed while imprisoned aged 18 to 25, was followed through national registers from age 15 to 25-34. Substantial differences in criminal histories between violent offenders and a matched comparison group (n = 10,000) were demonstrated. Five trajectory groups were identified: four persisting and one desisting. Although differences were observed between persisting trajectory groups, a higher prevalence of early life risk factors was generally displayed compared to the desisting, especially in conduct problems and experiences of out-of-home placements. Neurocognitive ability and prevalence of ADHD and autism were similar across trajectories. Severe early life risks highlight the population's need for early interventions.

Importance de la mémoire autobiographique chez les patients antisociaux

The study of autobiographical memory allows the understanding of identity construction. Narrative identity is fundamental to ensure continuity in one's life history. Over the last five years, we have witnessed a boom in scientific research highlighting narrative identity disorders in people with Antisocial Personality Disorder. These studies focus on the methodology of Recall of Self-Defining Memories. People with Antisocial Personality Disorder have difficulty integrating their memories, recall more multiple memories with negative valence, and refer to threatening or relational life events. The narrative incoherence observed could be characteristic of the disturbed identity functioning in young adults with Antisocial Personality Disorder. It would be interesting to study this functioning earlier in the life trajectory of adolescents with a Conduct Disorder. Assessing the Self-Defining Memories of these adolescents can clarify the identity related to the development of their criminal trajectory and identify the presence of narrative coherence. The aim is to interfere in the construction of their identity and to accompany them earlier in their forensic trajectory in order to improve the integration of their potentially traumatic life experiences. This psychological work to identify and make sense of traumatic experiences should have a beneficial effect on the regulation of the negative emotions generated by these memories. We hypothesise that antisocial behaviour and childhood adversity are more related to the inability to integrate than personality disorder.

Malas víctimas: Un acercamiento a las perspectivas y experiencias de mujeres delincuentes

This paper aims is to explore concrete experiences of delinquent women, based on gender and violence as intertwined analytical dimensions. The qualitative study is based on interviews with three women released from Buenos Aires (Argentina) prison system, with different criminal trajectories. The testimonies show, on the one hand, how their income in this masculinized environment destabilized their gender self-perceptions and, on the other, how the advance of drug trafficking and anti-drug policies produced a young, deprofessionalized and generically “disempowered” female subject .

Applying Offending Trajectory Analyses to Men Adjudicated for Child Sexual Exploitation Material Offenses

We applied offending trajectory analyses to 387 men adjudicated for child sexual exploitation material (CSEM) offenses. After an average of 20 years, we found two trajectories of sexual offending and violent offending: one that peaked in late adolescence and was associated with higher rates of crimes, and one that peaked in the 30s and was associated with a lower rate of crime. We found four trajectories when modeling any crime. The findings highlight the heterogeneity of men with CSEM offenses. Although lifelong patterns of numerous sexual crimes were uncommon, men with more sexual crimes had greater indicators of sexual interest in children and a younger age of first contact with police. CSEM offenses were rarely the first offense in their criminal trajectories. As such, early intervention targeting youth before they are further advanced in their criminal careers may also reduce future CSEM offending.

Toxic Substances Use and Juvenile Violence in Ivory Coast: The Case of Young Adults and Adolescents in Conflict with the Law, Known as &amp;quot;Microbes&amp;quot;

At the end of a post-electoral crisis in 2011, urban delinquency in Ivory Coast is undergoing a deep change. Young adults and teenagers attack the population according to a triptych that signs a particular modus operandi. An interpretation of this criminality, which is foreign to the taxonomy of delinquency, attempts to situate the place of toxic substances in the criminal actions of those whom the population calls "microbes". This was a cross-cutting study lasting three (03) months. Based on the exhaustive sampling technique, 123 subjects out of 583 young people in conflict with the law enrolled in a resocialisation and reintegration project in 2020, were selected. The respondents were all male, aged 10-25 years old and all out of school. They were all polydrug users, with prevalences of 98.37% for cannabis and 95.12% and 91.87% respectively for psychotropic drugs diverted from their therapeutic use and alcohol. Their criminal trajectory revealed offences of theft in meetings (100%) and assault and battery (84.55%), 15.45% of which led to death. Ritualisation was noted in the preparation of the assaults and in their execution; the first stage being conditioning by the consumption of a "psychoactive cocktail", the second: acting in a gang, and finally the third stage: execution of a scene of murderous violence with knives and unusual weapons 97.28% (machete, axe and human bones). Criminal intentionality presides over the act in the case of "microbes". Drug use only serves to convey a feeling of omnipotence and an increase in cortical excitement. It thus responds to a ritualisation imbued with symbolic signifiers and constitutes a preparatory conditioning for planned predatory violence. The traditional tandem drug and crime should not be the only explanatory approach to all criminal violence among drug users.

Criminal career trajectory in the perspective of qualitative research

The article presents an example of the implementation of one of the narrative study methods, which aims to develop pedagogical implications constituting the premises for building the theory and/or designing educational activities. This goal set the line of reasoning from determining the significance of biographical research in pedagogy, by demonstrating the scientific value of the narrative, to showing how to study (auto)biographical narration using the procedure of interaction analysis.

Developmental Patterns of Religiosity in Relation to Criminal Trajectories among Serious Offenders moving from Adolescence to Young Adult

Using Group-Based Trajectory Models and Growth Curve Models, this study aimed to identify distinctive trajectories of religious attendance, religious importance and spirituality and how these trajectories related to changes in crime. The findings varied by measures of religiosity and types of crime. Generally, different measures of religiosity had little to do with initial offenses. A few trajectories of religious attendance and importance associated with both violent and income offenses, while changes in spirituality only related to violent offenses. Losses in religiosity may associate with elevated risks of recidivism. A small range of gains and losses in religiosity may increase the risk of recidivism, while maintaining high religiosity over time may result in a smaller growth change in recidivism.

What Factors Predict the Self-Identification of Drug Dependency Among Australian Police Detainees? Prevalence, Correlates, and Implications for the Criminal Justice System

The drug-crime nexus has received interest from both drug-crime scholars and public policy experts internationally. While there is little disagreement that drug use is linked to higher rates of crime, causation remains hotly contested. One area of emerging interest is the confounding influence of “identity” in shaping long-term behavioral drug use and criminal trajectories. In this study, we explore the prevalence with which recent drug-using police detainees self-identify as drug-dependent and, using logistic regression, model self-identification as a function of one’s demographic, and drug-use profile. We find that being female and younger is associated with an increased odds of self-identifying oneself as dependent, controlling for drug use variables. Of the five drug types, primary heroin users are the most likely to self-identify, whereas cocaine, cannabis, and amphetamine users are less likely. To end, the potential implications of these results are discussed, and future research avenues are explored.

¿Trayectorias Delictivas Versátiles o Especializadas? Agresores de Violencia Intrafamiliar

The aim of this study was to describe the evolution of criminal trajectories, specialized or versatile, of a group of 10,505 Chilean men arrested for domestic violence crimes in 2007, starting from all new arrests carried out the following 9 years (2007 to 2016) in order to identify the best intervention strategies. A longitudinal pseudoprospective design was used, as if it corresponded to a prospective longitudinal study. The results indicate that 93.2p of men relapsed, accumulating 95,207 new arrests. Both frequency and prevalence prevailed in violent crimes. Criminal specialization is low (13.9p), as is recidivism for violence against women and other relatives. Versatile aggressors (86.1p) turned out to be the most frequent offenders, participating in more violent crimes and achieving more extensive criminal trajectories. Rehabilitation and intervention strategies suitable for particular characteristics of each criminal trajectory are required.

Walking Into the Sunset: How Criminal Achivement Shapes the Desistance Process: Criminal Achievement and the Desistance Process

According to the criminal career paradigm, the link between past and future criminal activities is important and the desistance process may vary for individuals whose criminal trajectories were punctuated by failure compared with those who achieved a certain level of success. This study, based on the life narratives of 27 individuals who maintained a state of nonoffending for more than a year, examines how criminal achievement modulates the desistance process. The aim is to understand whether criminal achievement acts as a barrier or a facilitator in the desistance process. A short questionnaire based on the life-history calendar method was used to classify individuals according to the parameters of their criminal careers. Narrative life stories were then used to look at the obstacles and frustrations encountered during desistance. The results show the relation between criminal achievement and desistance is complex: success in criminal activities is not always hindering desistance.

Biografias necessárias: vida e lida de adolescentes com trajetória infracional em Belo Horizonte

O artigo apresenta resultados preliminares de pesquisa realizada com adolescentes autores de ato infracional em cumprimento da medida socioeducativa de semiliberdade em Belo Horizonte. A partir da abordagem do curso de vida e da metodologia de narrativas biográficas, buscou-se compreender as sequências do ingresso e permanência de dois adolescentes em suas trajetórias infracionais, abordando a infância, interações sociais, adesão à prática infracional e aprofundamento do envolvimento no “mundo do crime”. Apesar das especificidades e particularidades de cada trajetória e da forma única como os sujeitos constroem sua identidade ao longo de suas vivências e interações sociais, foi possível identificar semelhanças nas biografias narradas pelos adolescentes sujeitos da pesquisa.

Who is Transitioning out of Prison? Characterising Female Offenders and Their Needs in Chile

The last decades’ increase in female incarceration has translated into an increasing number of women being released from prison. Understanding their characteristics and criminal trajectories can enlighten us regarding the different needs of women upon re-entering society after incarceration. Drawing on data from the Reinserción, Desistimiento y Reincidencia en Mujeres Privadas de Libertad en Chile study, this article identifies different profiles among a cohort of 225 women who were released from prison in Santiago, Chile, and demonstrates that significant heterogeneity exists among them in terms of their criminal trajectories and the intervention needs to support their transition out of prison.