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

Abstract

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.