Does the intergenerational transmission of crime depend on family complexity?

Abstract

This study examines whether the intergenerational transmission of crime depends on family complexity. Background: Research has found a substantial intergenerational transmission of crime. But the focus on biological parents in such research tends to not fully align with current demographic trends-which emphasize increasing family complexity (in the form of family instability and prevalence of stepparent-families)-nor with theories which predict why we should observe such transmissions. Method: We use Danish administrative data on children born in 1985-1995 and linear probability models to estimate whether the association between paternal conviction and offspring conviction risk varies between children living in intact families with both biological parents at age 15 and children living in alternative family constellations, defined by instability and presence of a stepfather in the family. We furthermore examine whether a stepfather's conviction predicts children's conviction risk. Results: The influence of paternal conviction-net of differences in demographics and parental socioeconomic statuswas significantly diminished only in family constellations where a stepfather was present and mostly so in families with high degree of stability. But having a convicted stepfather was associated with a higher conviction risk. Conclusion:The findings have important implications for theories of the intergenerational transmission of crime as they underline that biological family ties do not lock in children's future crime risks.

The Importance of Living Arrangements for Criminal Persistence and Desistance: A Novel Test of Exposure to Convicted Family Members

“…Hence, housemates, particularly because of frequency and intensity, may be quite important conduits of criminal influence. This assertion parallels research by Anker and Andersen (2021) on the intergenerational transmission of crime between parents and children, in that the active transmission of criminal influences is facilitated by direct and frequent interaction between family members, particularly through co-residence.…”

Desistance as an Intergenerational Process

“…As a large body of social scientific research has acknowledged over the past several decades, social parents have become a more common feature in children's lives and exert substantial influences on the well-being of children throughout the life-course (e.g., Bzostek 2008, Cherlin & Furstenberg 1994. Although some research on youth delinquent behavior (e.g., Apel & Kaukinen 2008) and the intergenerational transmission of crime and criminal justice contact specifically (e.g., Anker & Andersen 2021) has engaged with research on how social parents shape several different intergenerational transmission processes (e.g., Bloome 2017, de Leeuw & Kalmijn 2020, Erola & Jalovaara 2017, Kalmijn et al 2019, research on the intergenerational transmission of crime and criminal justice contact has largely continued to focus on biological parents. This oversight is unfortunate, as existing research on poor and minority families and families with low levels of education-precisely the families for whom contact with the criminal justice system is especially prevalent-are most likely to be composed of some combination of biological parents and social parents (e.g., McLanahan 2004).…”