Friends of the Forensic Science Club, this week we present the paper “Criminal Behavior and Psychosocial Risk Factors in Brazilian Adolescent Offenders: An Exploratory Latent Class Analysis” by Galinari, L. S. and Rezende Bazon, M. (2021), in which authors carry out a study in which they try to stablish a typology of young offenders in the Brazilian context, considering their criminal and personal characteristics.
In last week’s paper we explored the topic of juvenile offenders in relation to recidivism.
This week we focus on a study that asks whether it is possible to establish a typology of young offenders to make easier their treatment and reintegration, in the context of Brazil.
Norms in most of the world advocate for a justice system that is different for adults and for adolescents. This means that it is usually considered that adolescence is a phase of human development in which an individual is subjected to quick and simultaneous transformations both physically and psychologically.
Therefore, adolescents are a vulnerable segment of population when we talk about deviant behaviors because they are highly susceptible to changes. This is due to the great neuropsychological plasticity of the moment of development in which they are.
This is why most judicial systems conceive juvenile justice not only as a way to make them responsible for their actions, but also as a way to help young people complete their psychosocial development through treatments that focus in their social reintegration and in reducing the chances of recidivism.
Previous research has pointed out the need to focus on personal aspects (impulsivity, substance abuse, antisocial attitudes…) and micro-social aspects (family ties, parenting practices, school absenteeism…) of adolescents to understand their criminality.
However, young people in the justice system represent a heterogeneous group, with different problems and different needs. Therefore, the effectiveness of interventions and studies in this field is conditioned by their adaptation and personalization to this heterogeneity.
In previous studies, juvenile offenders have been repeatedly identified with a pattern characterized by a high frequency of low-severity crimes, poverty, poor family relationships, and poor academic performances.
However, authors of the article want to go further and they try to establish a slightly more precise typology.
To do this, they take a sample of 400 young offenders. All of them are men, due to the fact that they are significantly more numerous in the juvenile justice system of Brazil, where the study was carried out. The average age was almost 17 years.
For the analysis of their cases, different psychosocial questionnaires with scientific validity were used.
With the obtained results authors are able to make a classification of four types of juvenile offenders, although they point out that precautions must be taken regarding the typology, since each person and case has its peculiarities.
There is a profile called C1 that refers to adolescents who, although they have been prosecuted for some crime, are not different from adolescents who have not, in essence. There are also no significant differences in terms of their exposure to social and personal variables that we can consider criminogenic.
In this profile there is a recurrence to deal with unpleasant thoughts linked to aspects perceived as negative about oneself and/or their relationships. As a result, these adolescents will tend to repress these emotions.
With this profile, these young people would have few intervention needs. Authors advise an intervention that does not have to do with justice, or a mild judicial intervention.
Subsequently, the C2 profile appears. This refers to adolescents who, despite having a more important criminal participation than the adolescents in C1 group, show a pattern of behavior characterized by a low crime frequency and the absence of violent crimes.
However, in this profile there are important scores for social maladjustment and alienation. That is, they are young people with antisocial beliefs and values, and with distrust of others.
These adolescents need interventions focused on these behaviors and assistance in prosocial socialization settings. In addition, considering their low danger, less restrictive measures should be approved for them.
The profile called C3 refers to adolescents who present a greater criminal commitment, with a crime frequency and diversity of crimes above the average, plus, these crimes tend to be violent.
These young people have a history of family violence and negative school relationships. However, no special difficulties stand out on a psychological level.
This type of adolescents should participate in interventions focused on improving their family and school relationships and, if at any time they have a significant criminal commitment, authors consider necessary a more intense judicial measure.
Finally, the C4 profile appears. These adolescents present a score above the average in frequency and diversity of violent crimes, as well as in social and personal risk variables. They would have very little attachment to their parents, behavioral problems at school, episodes of family violence, and criminal records in their families.
On the other hand, they would also move through environments of social maladjustment, they would manifest aggressiveness, antisocial orientation, low impulse control, skepticism, and distrust towards others.
These people have much more complex needs. They should focus primarily on controlling antisocial attitudes and improving their self-control. They also need intervention in social aspects, especially in the development of family relationships. Once they commit a serious crime, if it happens, intense and restrictive measures may be necessary.
The authors highlight that more than 40% of the adolescents who participated in the study were classified in the C4 category.
For future research, authors consider that the different proposed profiles can be of great help, especially to organize the interventions in a more appropriate way. Furthermore, it is important to propose, implement and evaluate intervention protocols that always bear in mind the heterogeneity in adolescent offenders.
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