Analyzing the Origins of Life-Course-Persistent Offending

Abstract

Moffitt’s developmental taxonomy has sparked much attention among criminologists interested in explaining the etiology of life-course-persistent (LCP) offending. The taxonomy suggests that genetic factors influence LCP offending, that genetic risk factors will be mediated by neuropsychological deficits, and that genetic factors interact with environmental factors to influence LCP offending. Various behavior genetic methodologies were used to estimate the genetic influence on LCP offending, to determine whether these genetic factors were mediated by the presence of neuropsychological deficits, and to control for genetic factors while simultaneously estimating the impact of numerous environmental influences. The findings suggested that genetic factors influence persistent offending and that these influences are partially mediated by levels of self-control. No parental influences predicted persistent offending after controlling for genetic effects, no Gene × Environment interactions were found, and few environmental influences operated as a nonshared environmental predictor of persistent offending.