Tests of Theories of Crime in Female Prisoners: Social Bond and Control, Risk Taking, and Dynamic Systems Theories (original) (raw)
Tests of Theories of Crime in Female Prisoners
Abstract Several general theories of crime were tested with path models on 293 female prisoners in a U.S. State prison. The theories tested included Social Bond and Control, Thrill/Risk Seeking, and a new attachment-based Developmental Dynamic Systems model. A large battery of different instruments ranging from measures of risk taking, to a crime addiction scale, to Childhood Adverse Events, to attachments and clinical issues were used. The older general theories of crime did not hold up well under the rigor of path modeling. The new dynamic systems model was supported that incorporated adverse childhood events leading to (a) peer crime, (b) crime addiction, and (c) a measure derived from the Attachment and Clinical Issues Questionnaire (ACIQ) that takes individual differences in attachments and clinical issues into account. The results were discussed in terms of new approaches to Research Defined Criteria of Diagnosis (RDoC) and new approaches to intervention. Keywords female prisoners, attachment and crime, risk seeking theories of crime, social bond theories, ACIQ, RDoC diagnoses, individual versus group analyses, dynamic systems theories of crime
International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology
Most modern theories suggest that interpersonal relationships are of central importance in the development of criminal behavior. We tested the parent attachment scales of a new research and clinical measure, the Attachment and Clinical Issues Questionnaire (ACIQ). It is a 29-scale battery assessing attachments to mother, father, partner, and peers, which also includes several related clinical scales. Sixty-one (18-20 years of age) male offenders from a maximum security detention center and 131contrasts completed the ACIQ. ANOVA demonstrated that mother and father attachments displayed different patterns. The attachment scales also predicted the numbers of crimes within the population of juvenile offenders. Thus, the parent attachment scales of the ACIQ showed promise as an instrument to test dynamic systems approaches to developmental models of criminal behavior.
Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, 2011
. The relationship between attachment, personality and antisocial tendencies in a prison sample: A pilot study. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology 52, 268-276. This study examined the role of adult attachment and personality in relation to antisocial tendencies (i.e. convictions for violence and interpersonal problems in romantic relationships) in Norwegian prison inmates (N = 92). Attachment styles and personality were measured using self-report questionnaires (RSQ; and NEO-FFI, Costa & McCrae, 1992a). The prison inmates scored higher on avoidant than on anxious attachment style. While age and agreeableness (negatively associated) emerged as significant predictors of violence, anxious attachment explained most of the variances in aggression in intimate relationships. The study suggests that different types of antisocial tendencies could have different attachment and general personality correlates.
Attachment Among Juvenile Delinquents
2017
The subject of the study is to examine the relation between delinquency and attachment (UPIPAV-R; Hanak, 2004). The sample contains 60 male adolescents (30 with a history of transgressive behavior). Two discriminant functions are extracted. The first function differs the respondents with history of violation of the student conduct code, on folowing dimensions: Mentalization, Regulation of anger and Using of the secure base. The second function describes juvenile offenders and it is saturated with dimensions: Unresolved trauma and Negative model of self and others.
The Relationship between Attachment and Criminal Psychopathy: A Systematic Review
Dialoges in Clinical Νeuroscience & Μental Ηealth, 2020
Background: Psychopathy has been theoretically and clinically associated with pathologies of attachment. Cotemporary research on this theme, however, remains scarce. Objectives: The aim of the present systematic review is to examine the relationship between attachment and criminal psychopathy amongst violent and sexually violent incarcerated offenders and forensic mental health patients. Methods: Relevant databases (Psych Info, PubMed, Sage and Web of Science) were searched from 1980 to March 2019 to identify suitable studies for inclusion. The systemic review was carried out in line with 'Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-analysis' (PRISMA) guidelines to ensure that bias is avoided and also to allow a rigorous and in-depth examination of the literature. Results: Two studies were included in the review. The studies demonstrate that there is a high prevalence of traumatic childhood experiences, including various types of abuse and neglect amongst criminal psychopaths. It appears that attachment seems to be an important factor in understanding psychopathy. Conclusion: Higher scores on psychopathy appear to be associated with abnormalities of attachment, such as disorganized, insecure-avoidant, and insecure-preoccupied attachment styles. Given the narrowness of the inclusion criteria, only two studies identified for inclusion. Future research should aim to explore further the relationship between attachment and psychopathy.
The Relationship Between Attachment and Psychopathy: A Study with a Sample of Violent Offenders
Current Psychology, 2014
This study used a mixed quantitative-qualitative methodology to investigate the relationship between attachment and psychopathy. The Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R; was administered to 139 Italian offenders who were convicted of violent crimes (murder, rape, child sexual abuse, armed robbery, assault causing bodily harm). First, we explored whether the two PCL-R items theoretically denoting devaluation of attachment bonds (promiscuous sexual behavior and many marital relationships) were able to predict PCL-R total, factor and facet scores.
This study analyzes the role of trauma and disrupted attachments in the development of adolescent girls' violent behavior. A grounded theory approach was applied to the narratives of 24 young women (age 13-16 years old) who were adjudicated and remanded to custody for an assault or robbery. Three types of loss were inductively derived from the data (death of a loved one, physical absence, and psychological unavailability) as were two categories of violence (in the home and in the community). Findings suggest that extensive losses and violent experiences disrupted the young women's attachment to their caregivers, and these experiences were disregarded or inadequately addressed. Detachment and the absence of supportive others left the young women poised to engage in a variety of maladaptive behaviors including violence. Theoretical and programmatic implications are discussed.
Attachment styles among a sample of Estonian adult male offenders
2016
The link between offenders' attachment styles and bully-category, as well as violent offending has been assessed empirically in the present study. Estonian adult male (N = 110: 47 of them violent and 63 nonviolent) offenders were required to complete a measure of attachment, namely the Multiple-item Attachment Scale developed by Simpson (1990), and exploring secure, avoidant and anxious/ambivalent styles. Inmates in the high security prison were also required to complete a self-report behavioral checklist-Direct and Indirect Prisoner Behaviour Checklist-Revised (DIPC-R©: Ireland, 2002a), that enables inmates to categorize into four groups: pure bullies (N = 16), pure victims (N = 22), bully/victims (N = 47), and those not involved in bullying or victimization (N = 25). A significant difference was found regarding the bully-categories: (1) pure victims reported lower secure attachment scores than the other bully-categories; (2) bully/victims and pure victims reported higher anxious/ambivalent attachment scores than pure bullies and not involved offenders. Additionally, a significant difference was found regarding the violent versus non-violent offender status: violent offenders reported higher anxious/ambivalent attachment scores than non-violent inmates. The present study extends results to a sample of adult male prison inmates suggesting that offenders may share some common characteristics across different prison settings regarding insecure attachment styles as risk factors of prison bullying and violent criminal behavior.
Personality characteristics associated with reconviction in sexual and violent offenders
Journal of Forensic Psychiatry & Psychology, 2004
A prototype-matching approach was employed to assess romantic attachment in young adults. The 48-item Hazan and Shaver's Experiences in Close Relationships inventory was configured, via prototype definitions, to capture core themes of four romantic attachment patterns: secure, preoccupied, dismissing, and fearful. The personality attributes associated with each attachment pattern were evaluated by referencing both observer evaluations and self-report correlates. The observer evaluations of the individuals matching the secure, preoccupied, and fearful prototypes were mostly congruent with their self-perceptions, whereas somewhat greater discrepancy emerged for individuals matching the dismissing prototype. The discussion focused on differences in the personality functioning associated with different romantic attachment patterns, the prototype-matching method, the importance of including both observer-and self-report data in the validation of self-report measures, and the relative advantages of self-report versus interview methodologies in studying attachment.