Prosocial Bonds Research Articles

Bonding With Non-Parental Others During Juvenile Incarceration: Communication Skills, Bonding Capability, and Recidivism

This study went beyond the parent-child relationship and estimated justice-involved youths’ social bonds with mentors, teachers, facility staff, and peers during incarceration. Furthermore, rather than testing the widely found link between social bonds and recidivism, the study examined the factors that enabled youths to develop bonds during incarceration. Based on four waves of data of confined youth, the author used structural equation modeling and bootstrapping to examine how communication skills enabled the cultivation of social bonds and thus indirectly inhibited recidivism. Findings revealed that better communication skills were associated with a lower likelihood of recidivism. This crime-inhibitory effect was completely mediated by the prosocial bonds youths developed during incarceration. This study added to the literature by identifying the factors that explained one’s capacity to build social bonds. Implications for intervention programming were also discussed.

The religious origins of state capacity in Europe and China

As conduits for the transmission of cultural values, networks of religion and state originating in premodern Europe and China contributed to the institutional roots of their respective development and continue to forge different economic trajectories. In Europe, a universalistic religious doctrine, ideologically and institutionally distinct from the state, led to important underlying differences in market structures and informal constraints. Legal protocols and innovations in social governance emerged whose origins lay in Church doctrine and Christian ethics. In China, Confucian teaching and an examination-based recruitment of officials strengthened centralized authority; but without a systemwide transmission of unifying prosocial bonds and values as a foundation for contract law, this cheap system of social control left the state encumbered with fiscally anemic finances. These differences preceded the Great Divergence and persisted long after it to produce in Europe greater civic and fiscal capacity, and in the end more state building.

Understanding Changes in Violent Extremist Attitudes During the Transition to Early Adulthood

ObjectivesThe current study seeks to explain changes in support for violent extremism during the transition to early adulthood. This period during the life course could increase uncertainty and vulnerability to radicalization, or alternatively lead to maturation, prosocial bonds, and consequently less support for violent extremism. In the absence of population-based longitudinal data on violent extremist attitudes, we know very little about how and why attitudes change during this period.MethodData came from an ongoing longitudinal cohort study in Zürich, Switzerland (n = 910). First, we assessed the variation in violent extremist attitudes between ages 17 and 20 using the Reliable Change Index. Second, we used hybrid regression techniques to investigate to what extent theoretically relevant factors can explain between- and within-individual differences in violent extremist attitudes.ResultsOur results show that violent extremist attitudes are largely stable or declining between late adolescence and early adulthood, and that within-individual changes in low self-control, conflict coping skills, and peer disapproval of violence can in part explain these changes.ConclusionsFor young people in Zürich, the transition to early adulthood was characterized by increases in psychosocial maturity, more prosocial peers, and less deviant behavior, which in turn was associated with lower support for violent extremism. Existing research on effective interventions for criminal desistance and disengagement from gangs may therefore be fruitful avenues for developing programs aimed at reducing support for violent extremism and fostering deradicalization.

An Early Adverse Experience Goes a Long, Criminogenic, Gendered Way: The Nexus of Early Adversities, Adult Offending, and Gender

Early adverse experiences have been identified as a salient risk factor for crime and delinquency. However, past empirical studies predominantly used youth and young adult samples; much less is known about this risk factor’s effect on adult offending. This study examines early adverse experiences and adult pro-social bonds simultaneously using a mixed-gender sample of serious adult offenders with an average age of 35. Findings from survival analysis suggest that early adversities have an enduring detrimental effect on people’s lives well into adulthood yet in an intricate way. They have no direct effect on recidivism among adult offenders. However, they significantly influence recidivism by interacting with gender: Female respondents with early adversities demonstrated a significantly higher risk of recidivism than other female respondents, whereas no such effect was observed among male respondents. Implications for future research and policymaking are discussed.

The Influence of Religious Involvement on Intimate Partner Violence Victimization via Routine Activities Theory

Routine activities theory attempts to explain victimization by examining how one's behavior, or routine activities, increases or decreases their likelihood of victimization. It has been postulated that religious individuals are less likely to associate with motivated offenders, less likely to reduce their target suitability, and more likely to enhance their guardianship, in turn reducing victimization. How, if at all, this theoretical framework can predict protection from a specific form of victimization, such as intimate partner violence (IPV), remains unexplored. Using the American subsample of the International Dating Violence Study (n = 4,162), this article attempts to determine whether religious involvement can serve as a factor that reduces IPV victimization indirectly through the three elements of routine activities theory: motivated offenders, target suitability, and capable guardianship. To test this research question, a series of logistic regression models are conducted. Results of these models indicate that religiosity does have a negative and significant impact on victims of IPV, net of variables derived from routine activities theory. This study is among the first to suggest that perhaps this theoretical framework may not be applicable to all forms of victimization. The major practical implication of this finding is that IPV victimization could be reduced using faith-based strategies. For example, religious counseling or preventive and intervention programs that increase prosocial bonds between partners are viable options in helping to reduce IPV victimization among couples. Nevertheless, it is imperative to determine other non-religious programs or methods to protect from IPV for individuals who are not religious.

Community and School Contexts in Youth Gang Involvement: Combining Social Bonds and Social Organization Perspectives

Social bonds and social organization theory are combined to examine schools’ roles in regulating youth gang involvement in the context of community changes—an integrated approach to analyze psychological and sociological influences simultaneously. A subsample (N = 269) from Gottfredson et al.’s (A national study of delinquency prevention in school final report, Gottfredson Associates, Inc., Ellicott City, MD, 2000) national sample of schools to examine school-based, gang-prevention programs was combined with U.S. Census data to model the effects of community changes and school social organization on student’s probability of gang involvement. Changes in the community’s level of concentrated disadvantage and racial heterogeneity were related to a school’s level of disorder. The probability of a student being gang-involved almost triples if the student attends a school one standard deviation below the sample mean School Social Bonds score; it doubles if the student attends a school one standard deviation above the sample School Disorder mean. Student characteristics partially mediated the relationship between School Disorder and gang involvement. Findings support extending social bonds theory to the school level. School-based, gang-prevention efforts may benefit from climates characterized by prosocial bonds and low social disorganization, especially for schools in highly-disadvantaged and/or demographically-changing communities.

Oxytocin receptor gene methylation and substance use problems among young African American men

BackgroundStressful or supportive social environments promote biological changes with regulatory implications for future relationships and substance abuse. Recent research suggests links between adverse social environments, prosocial relationships, methylation at the oxytocin receptor gene (OXTR), and substance abuse. The potential for OXTR methylation to act as the mechanism linking social environments to substance abuse has yet to be investigated. We hypothesized that, for young African American men, childhood adversity increases, and supportive, prosocial bonds with parents, peers, partners, and community mentors decrease OXTR methylation levels, which in turn predict increases in substance-related symptoms. MethodsA sample of 358 rural African American men (age 19 at baseline) provided self-report data at three time points separated by 18 months and a genetic specimen at Time 2. ResultsEarly adversity was associated with OXTR methylation indirectly via contemporary prosocial relationships. OXTR methylation was a proximal predictor of changes in substance-related symptoms. We found no evidence for a direct association of self-reported childhood trauma with OXTR methylation status. ConclusionsFindings suggest that OXTR methylation is linked to substance use symptomatology, ostensibly resulting in increased expression of oxytocin (OT) in peripheral and central nervous systems. OXTR may act as a mechanism to explain how prosocial ties deter substance abuse and related problems. Despite conjectures in the literature that early adversity may become physiologically embedded via methylation in the OT system, direct effects were not evident. Rather, early adversity may affect OXTR methylation via influence on contemporary prosocial relationships.

Gender Differences in the Criminogenic Consequences Associated with Intergenerational Educational Mobility

The present study examines gender differences in the relationship between intergenerational educational mobility and crime using data from The National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health. Drawing on recent trends in college completion among men and women, as well as theories of social control and general strain, it also examines whether these relationships are mediated by prosocial bonds (i.e., familial and employment status), economic stressors, and social-psychological measures in adulthood. Results suggest that upward mobility is associated with decreases in crime for both gender groups; however, downward mobility is associated with increases in crime only for women. Findings are discussed in the context of the relative importance of a college degree for men’s and women’s life chances.

Transformative Rehabilitation: Exploring Prisoners’ Experiences of the Community Based Health and First Aid Programme in Ireland

Using an assisted desistance framework, this paper explores the lived experiences of 11 volunteers on the Community Based Health and First Aid programme, which operates in 14 prisons across Ireland and aims to enhance community health, hygiene awareness and first aid knowledge among prisoners through peer-to-peer education. The findings suggest that participation fostered a sense of agency among volunteers and facilitated the development of a new non-criminal self, centred on the ‘wounded healer’ identity. Additionally, participation appeared to deepen volunteers’ pro-social bonds with other prisoners, staff and families. The contribution of these findings to knowledge about desistance and desistance-focused practice is considered.

Accumulating (Dis)advantage: Do Social Bonds Mediate the Relationship Between Multiple Childhood Adversities and Persistent Offending?

The current study examines how cumulative adversity in childhood is related to both frequency of offending and criminal career length in adulthood. Specifically we examine (1) whether multiple adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) predict criminal career length and frequency of offending, and (2) if the formation of adult bonds mediates the relationship between adversity in childhood with persistent and chronic offending in adulthood. Analyses use data on a population of several hundred individuals who have committed numerous violent offenses and have criminal careers of up to 56 years in length (N = 401). Path analysis was used to estimate the total, indirect, and direct effects of the accumulation of multiple adversities on two key dimensions of a criminal career: career length and frequency of offending. Results indicate the pathway to frequent offending differs from the pathway to criminal career length. Prosocial bonds did not mediate the relationship between adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and criminal career length; instead, there was a significant direct effect of ACEs on career length. On the other hand, ACEs were negatively and indirectly related to frequency of offending through the particular bond of employment. Results suggest that early years are important for initiating trajectories of disadvantage; at the same time our results also demonstrate a role for interventions across the life course. Early interventions that attempt to diminish the impact of negative beginnings as well as interventions that facilitate efforts to build social capital during adulthood may have the ability to redirect trajectories.

A comparison of ‘psychosocially problematic gaming’ among middle and high school students in China and South Korea

This is the first study to compare the prevalence and predictors of problematic online gaming among middle and high school students in China and South Korea. Specifically, this study seeks to cross-culturally compare the impact gaming time, game genre, leisure environment, parental attachment, parental mediation and relationships with significant others have on ’psychosocially problematic gaming’ (PPG). In total, 3,109 students residing in five major cities in China and South Korea were sampled. Overall, more than twice as many Chinese respondents (30.4% vs. 11.4%) were found to be psychosocially problematic gamers (PPGers). In both countries, more males than females are PPGers. Few differences were found regarding preferences for game genre. Students in both China and Korea liked MMORPG, Sports/Racing, and Shooting games. In both countries, game playing time and game use after midnight were found to be important predictors of psychosocially problematic gaming. With regard to game genres, MMORPG games for South Korean respondents and Action games for Chinese respondents increased the likelihood of psychosocially problematic gaming. However, the leisure environment had little effect. As expected, parental attachment and mediation affected psychosocially problematic gaming among Chinese students but, surprisingly, not among South Korean students. Nevertheless, prosocial bonds with parents, friends, and teachers did significant protect against psychosocially problematic gaming in both countries. Based on these findings various prevention measures are suggested.

Calculated or caring? Neanderthal healthcare in social context

ABSTRACT Explanations for patterns of healed trauma in Neanderthals have been a matter of debate for several decades. Despite widespread evidence for recovery from injuries or survival despite impairments, apparent evidence for healthcare is given limited attention. Moreover, interpretations of Neanderthals’ approach to injury and suffering sometimes assume a calculated or indifferent attitude to others. Here the authors review evidence for Neanderthal healthcare, drawing on a bioarchaeology of care approach and relating healthcare to other realms of Neanderthal social life. The authors argue that Neanderthal medical treatment and healthcare was widespread and part of a social context of strong pro-social bonds which was not distinctively different from healthcare seen in later contexts. They suggest that the time has come to accept Neanderthal healthcare as a compassionate and knowledgeable response to injury and illness, and to turn to other questions, such as cultural variation or the wider significance of healthcare in an evolutionary context.

Community Disadvantage, Prosocial Bonds, and Juvenile Reoffending

Prior efforts suggest that adverse community contexts have the ability to impact juvenile recidivism. However, far less research has examined the indirect effects of community disadvantage on delinquent youth reoffending. As a result, it remains unclear whether several theoretically relevant mechanisms mediate the effects of disadvantage on continued delinquent behavior. Drawing from theoretical models of contextual effects, as well as social control theory, the present study examines whether prosocial bonds are salient mechanisms in the context–recidivism relationship. Using a sample of over 20,000 juvenile offenders, our results indicate that both prosocial relationships and prosocial activities partially mediate the effect of community disadvantage on youth reoffending. Findings from the current study are discussed, along with policy implications and directions for future research in this area.

Arrested Development: Does the Grade Level at Which Juveniles Experience Arrest Matter?

This study examines the effect of arrest on delinquency at a salient transition during adolescence: the move from middle to high school. The effects of arrest on delinquency via deviant attitudes, attenuation of prosocial bonds, and involvement with deviant groups are examined to determine whether labeling processes and consequences vary for youth in 7th, 8th, or 9th grade. Longitudinal data from a school-based survey are used to estimate the direct and indirect effects of arrest on delinquency for youth in 7th, 8th, and 9th grades. Wald tests are used to determine whether there are significant differences across cohorts. While arrest is associated with increased delinquency for all three grade cohorts, effects are most detrimental for 7th graders. For these youth, arrest exerts a significant, direct effect across all intermediate outcomes and accounts for increased delinquency via neutralizations, weak school commitment, delinquent peers, and negative peer commitment. Although some of these mediators explain increases in delinquency among 8th and 9th graders, effects are smaller in magnitude. In total, arrest is associated with a 132 % increase in delinquency among 7th graders, but only a 55 % increase among 9th graders. The findings indicate that the effects of arrest become less severe as youth age and delinquency becomes “normative.” It is recommended that the unintended consequences of arrest should be carefully considered—particularly for younger youth as they relate to deviant attitudes and commitment to and involvement with delinquent peers—and interventions should be coupled with efforts to improve prosocial attitudes and relations to prevent future delinquency. Although the effects of arrest wane over time, they do not disappear, and youth continue to experience consequences associated with arrest after they transition to high school.

INTIMATE PARTNER VIOLENCE RISK AMONG VICTIMS OF YOUTH VIOLENCE: ARE EARLY UNIONS BAD, BENEFICIAL, OR BENIGN?

Youth violent victimization (YVV) is a risk factor for precocious exits from adolescence via early coresidential union formation. It remains unclear, however, whether these early unions 1) are associated with intimate partner violence (IPV) victimization, 2) interrupt victim continuity or victim-offender overlap through protective and prosocial bonds, or 3) are inconsequential. By using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (N = 11,928; 18-34 years of age), we examine competing hypotheses for the effect of early union timing among victims of youth violence (n = 2,479)-differentiating across victimization only, perpetration only, and mutually combative relationships and considering variation by gender. The results from multinomial logistic regression models indicate that YVV increases the risk of IPV victimization in first unions, regardless of union timing; the null effect of timing indicates that delaying union formation would not reduce youth victims' increased risk of continued victimization. Gender-stratified analyses reveal that earlier unions can protect women against IPV perpetration, but this is partly the result of an increased risk of IPV victimization. The findings suggest that YVV has significant transformative consequences, leading to subsequent victimization by coresidential partners, and this association might be exacerbated among female victims who form early unions. We conclude by discussing directions for future research.

PROTOCOL: Predictors of youth gang membership in low‐ and middle‐income countries: A systematic review

BACKGROUND The Problem There is evidence of gang violence in low- and middle-income countries in Africa and Asia, and the prevalence of gangs is particularly well documented throughout Central and South America (Decker & Pyrooz, 2010; Gatti et al., 2011). Official estimates of gang membership in Central America estimate approximately 69,000 members, while academic estimates believe this figure to be closer to 200,000 (UNODC, 2007). Some estimates are as high as 500,000 gang members in the region including South America and the Caribbean, and gangs have been identified as “the primary threat to regional stability and security” (Muggah & Aguirre, 2013). While reporting and recording issues make it difficult to estimate rates of gang violence, the homicide rate in Colombia, Brazil, El Salvador and Guatemala are substantially higher than those of European and North American countries (Decker & Pyrooz, 2010; UNODC, 2007). Gangs are also active in South Africa, with an estimate of 100,000 members in Western Cape alone (Reckson & Becker, cited in Decker & Pyrooz, 2010); however, to date, there is limited research examining gangs in Africa and Asia...

Social and Individual Predictors of Substance Use for Native American Youth

ABSTRACT Substance abuse is a primary concern for youth worldwide and increasingly so for Native American youth. Guided by theoretical models of the socialization of substance use in children and adolescents, we conducted a preliminary examination of socialization factors specific to Native American youth. Strong, pro-social bonds with three primary socialization sources (family, school, and peer networks) were hypothesized to facilitate child self-efficacy and refusal skills and predict drug use. Participants were 84 Native American children between the ages of 9 and 11, living on or near a northern reservation. Structural path analysis results indicated that self-efficacy was predicted from school bonding and peer social skills, while refusal skills were predicted from parent support/involvement and school bonding. Both self-efficacy and refusal skills predicted child drug use/experimentation. This preliminary study expands the limited research available for substance abuse prevention projects specific to rural, reservation-based Native American communities.