Exploring Parenting as a Predictor of Criminogenic Thinking in College Students

Abstract

Crime-promoting cognitions and attitudes, globally labeled as criminogenic thinking, are shown to perpetuate maladaptive and antisocial behavior in criminals and nonoffenders. In the nonoffender population, these thinking patterns may not lead to illegal behavior, but can result in irresponsible or maladaptive behavioral consequences. Theories suggest that early childhood parent-child interactions may be partly responsible for the development of criminogenic thinking. While the relationship between parenting and antisocial behavior is well documented, the connection between parenting and the development of criminogenic thinking styles has not yet been explored. The current study examined the nature of the relationship between exposure to parenting behaviors and subsequent criminogenic thoughts in a nonoffender, college population. The sample included 119 undergraduates. Results indicate that parenting may affect general criminogenic thinking as well as specific types of criminogenic thinking styles. Relevance and importance of the findings with regard to clinical work and parenting are also discussed.

Relationship between Parenting and Cognitive Schemas in a Group of Male Adult Offenders

“…Based on these results, it seems essential to further explore the correlation of retrospective ratings on parental binding with cognitive patterns in the inmates (Chambers et al, 2001 ; Thimm, 2013 ); toward this end, the study compares scores between offenders grown-ups and grown-ups with similar socio-demographic characteristics who have not committed offenses throughout their lives. The objectives of this work are: to investigate the presence of cognitive schemas, classified according to Young's model ( 1990 ), in a group of male adult prisoners; in particular, it is assumed the presence of maladaptive schemas such as social hostility and rejection, tendency to over-vigilance, and self-injurious behaviors, an hypothesis which accords with the international literature (Baker and Beech, 2004 ; Chakhssi et al, 2013 ; Gonzalez et al, 2013 ). to explore whether parental style influences the cognitive patterns in a group of offenders; hypothesizing that prisoners who experienced a dysfunctional attachment with their mother, characterized by low care, show more severe cognitive schemas, such as the tendency to social isolation, the perception of emotional deprivation, abandonment, and vulnerability (Smallbone and Dadds, 1998 ; Aime, 2008 ).…”

“…to investigate the presence of cognitive schemas, classified according to Young's model ( 1990 ), in a group of male adult prisoners; in particular, it is assumed the presence of maladaptive schemas such as social hostility and rejection, tendency to over-vigilance, and self-injurious behaviors, an hypothesis which accords with the international literature (Baker and Beech, 2004 ; Chakhssi et al, 2013 ; Gonzalez et al, 2013 ).…”

“…The literature underlines the presence of a connection between maladaptive cognitive schemas and attitudes in favor of crime; for example criminological thought leads to the reiteration of dysfunctional schemas and antisocial behaviors in both criminals and non-criminal subjects. In the non-offenders these thought patterns may not lead to illegal behavior, but to irresponsible or maladaptive consequences; in contrast, in convicted criminals these mental processes may determine further antisocial and illegal behavior (Baker and Beech, 2004 ; Chakhssi et al, 2013 ; Gonzalez et al, 2013 ).…”

Motivations for adolescent offending and truancy from school: retrospective interviews with adults recently released from a custodial prison sentence in England

“…Likewise parental disengagement (sometimes termed lack of parental supervision) is also frequently related to juvenile truancy and delinquency ( Breda, 2015 ; Collins et al., 2014 ; Hutchinson et al., 2009 ) and development of longer term of criminogenic thinking ( Gonzalez et al., 2013 ; Hoeve et al., 2009 ). A child’s emotional stability and maturity develop according to the quality of domestic interactions and, if there are deficits within the home environment, there is likely to be a breakdown in social growth and educational receptivity ( Thompson and Little, 1983 ).…”