Investigating offending and non-lethal severe violent victimization

A longitudinal study that includes measures of childhood problem behavior. We analysed offending, inpatient hospitalization, and outpatient care for violent victimization.

The peer-reviewed journal article, The Stockholm life-course project: investigating offending and non-lethal severe violent victimization, uses data from the Stockholm Life-Course Project (SLCP), a longitudinal study that includes measures of childhood problem behaviour. We analysed offending, inpatient hospitalization, and outpatient care for violent victimization. We replicated the well-established age-crime curve amongst SLCP study members. We found that hospitalization for severe violent victimization was most likely to occur between 20 and 40 years of age. We additionally considered how childhood problem behaviour impacted overall risk and life-course patterning of offending and victimization. Childhood problem behaviour was associated with a greater risk of criminal conviction. But childhood problem behaviour showed inconsistent associations with risk for police suspicion. Childhood problem behaviour was generally associated with greater involvement in crime up to middle adulthood. For victimization, childhood problem behaviour was generally associated with a greater risk. However, we were limited in our ability to estimate the effect of childhood problem behaviour on life-course patterning of victimization due to the rarity of victimization. These results imply a need for larger studies on violent victimization and greater nuance in our understanding of childhood risks and their life-long outcomes. You can read the article here