Does Trauma Exacerbate Criminal Behavior? An Exploratory Study of Child Maltreatment and Chronic Offending in a Sample of Chinese Juvenile Offenders

Xuening Yao, Hongwei Zhang and Ruohui Zhao ()
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Xuening Yao: Department of Sociology, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Macau, Macau SAR 999078, China
Hongwei Zhang: School of Humanities, Jinan University, Zhuhai Campus, Zhuhai 519070, China
Ruohui Zhao: Department of Sociology, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Macau, Macau SAR 999078, China

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 18, 1-15

Abstract: (1) Background: Maltreated children are at increased risk for juvenile delinquency. Extant research has explored the effect of child maltreatment on either the initial risk of juvenile delinquency or general juvenile recidivism. However, little is known regarding the effect of child maltreatment on chronic offending. (2) Methods: Using a sample of 695 male juvenile offenders incarcerated in a centralized juvenile reformatory of the province X located in Southwest China, this study investigates both the prevalence of child maltreatment and the effect of child maltreatment on chronic offending among the juvenile offenders. Descriptive statistical analyses and multinomial logistic regression were utilized to conduct the analyses. (3) Results: A vast majority of the juvenile offenders experienced at least one type of child maltreatment. Moreover, maltreatment was generally found to be more prevalent in chronic offenders than in one-time offenders and recidivists. Results from a series of logistic regression analyses revealed that among five specific maltreatment types, only physical abuse exerted a statistically significant and positive impact on chronic offending. (4) Conclusions: The findings highlight the importance of providing early prevention and intervention programs to juvenile offenders who were physically abused in order to reduce general chronic offending as well as chronic violent offending.

Keywords: child maltreatment; physical abuse; chronic offending; Chinese juvenile offenders (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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