Pervasive influence of maternal and paternal criminal offending on early childhood development: a population data linkage study

Abstract

BackgroundParental criminal offending is an established risk factor for offending among offspring, but little evidence is available indicating the impact of offending on early childhood functioning. We used data from a large Australian population cohort to determine associations between exposure to parental offending and a range of developmental outcomes at age 5 years.MethodMulti-generation data in 66 477 children and their parents from the New South Wales Child Development Study were combined using data linkage. Logistic and multinomial regressions tested associations between any and violent offending histories of parents (fathers, mothers, or both parents) obtained from official records, and multiple measures of early childhood developmental functioning (social, emotional–behavioural, cognitive, communication and physical domains) obtained from the teacher-reported 2009 Australian Early Development Census.ResultsParental offending conferred significantly increased risk of vulnerability on all domains, particularly the cognitive domain. Greater risk magnitudes were observed for offending by both parents and by mothers than by fathers, and for violent than for any offending. For all parental offending exposures, vulnerability on multiple domains (where medium to large effects were observed) was more likely than on a single domain (small to medium effects). Relationships remained significant and of comparable magnitude following adjustment for sociodemographic covariates.ConclusionsThe effect of parental offending on early childhood developmental outcomes is pervasive, with the strongest effects on functioning apparent when both parents engage in violent offending. Supporting affected families in early childhood might mitigate both early developmental vulnerability and the propensity for later delinquency among these offspring.

Prenatal maternal smoking, maternal offending, and offspring behavioural and cognitive outcomes in early childhood

“…Parental antisocial behaviour, for instance, is linked to child externalising problems (Kim, Capaldi, Pears, Kerr, & Owen, 2009;Rhule, McMahon, & Spieker, 2004), and maternal antisocial behaviour is also a risk factor for early childhood physical aggression (Tremblay et al, 2004;Tzoumakis et al, 2017;Tzoumakis, Lussier, & Corrado, 2014). In addition, parental offending has also been shown to be associated with offspring cognitive and internalising problems in early childhood (Coley, Carrano, & Lewin-Bizan, 2011;Laurens et al, 2017), suggesting a more pervasive effect.…”

Parental Offending and Child Physical Health, Mental Health, and Drug Use Outcomes: A Systematic Literature Review

“…More consistent evidence arises from the studies of large, representative cohorts derived from administrative records. Drawing data from a large Australian record linkage project, Laurens et al (2017) found that, after adjustment for socio-demographic covariates, children's risk of poor physical health development at five years of age was highest if their father, mother, or both parents had a history of offending. Greater risk was observed for parents with a history of violent offending, and the magnitude of the association was higher for maternal than paternal offending.…”

Risk Marker or Risk Mechanism? The Effect of Family, Household, and Parental Imprisonment on Children and Adults’ Social Support and Mental Health

“…However, empirical findings on the effects of parental imprisonment on children have been mixed. Using a population-based record linkage study, two recent Australian studies found associations between parental offending and adverse developmental outcomes in early childhood, including aggression, social competence, language and cognitive skills, and physical health and wellbeing at age five (Laurens et al, 2017;Tzoumakis et al, 2017). On the other hand, an Australian longitudinal study found that, after controlling for pre-existing risk, having a mother whose current partner had ever been incarcerated was not significantly associated with problem behaviors in 14-year-olds (Kinner, Alati, Najman, & Williams, 2007).…”