Darrick Jolliffe

Is low empathy related to bullying after controlling for individual and social background variables

This paper examines the relationship between low empathy and bullying while also controlling for the impact of a number of other individual and social background variables linked with bullying. This included the relationship to the prevalence of bullying, but also to the frequency and type of bullying. Questionnaires were completed by 720 adolescents (344 females, 376 males) aged 13-17 in three secondary schools in England. The results suggested that low affective empathy was independently related to bullying by males, but not females. There was no evidence that low cognitive empathy was independently related to bullying, but high impulsivity was related to all forms of male bullying and to female bullying. The implications of the findings for research and practice are discussed.

Examining the relationship between low empathy and self‐reported offending

Purpose. This paper reports the results of a study comparing measures of cognitive and affective empathy to self-reported offending in a group of adolescents. n nMethods. Data on self-reported offending and empathy were collected from 720 UK adolescents (376 males, 344 females) in Year 10 (mean age = 14.8) using anonymous questionnaires administered in a classroom setting. The prevalence of self-reported offending was found to be consistent with results of a national level study that employed a similar methodology. The empathy scale, which was developed and validated using this sample, assessed levels of cognitive and affective empathy. n nResults. Males who had committed any offence had lower empathy (especially affective) than those who had not. Females who had committed any offence did not have low empathy compared to those who had not. Both males and females who had committed violence had lower empathy than males and females who had not. High-rate male offenders had lower empathy (especially affective) than low-rate male offenders, and high-rate female offenders had lower empathy (especially affective) than low-rate female offenders. For males (but not for females), the relationship between low affective empathy and violence was accounted for by the relationship between low affective empathy and a high rate of offending. n nConclusions. More research comparing the empathy of males and females with their self-reports of offending is needed, especially in prospective longitudinal studies, so that the time ordering of the effects can be established. Also, more research is needed to investigate whether the relationship between low empathy and self-reported offending holds independent of other factors previously found to be associated with offending (e.g. low intelligence, low socio-economic status).

Personality and Crime

Personality traits are persisting underlying tendencies to behave in particular ways in particular situations. Temperament is the childhood equivalent of personality, and a difficult, undercontrolled temperament in infancy predicts later offending. The most crucial personality trait that predicts offending is impulsiveness, which may reflect deficits in the executive functions of the brain. Low empathy is probably related to offending, but the evidence is less convincing. Psychopathic personality (axa0cold, callous personality, including low empathy, low guilt, and low remorse) is more clearly correlated with offending. The Eysenck theory links extraversion, neuroticism, and psychoticism to offending, but analyses of Eysencks personality inventories show that the most significant relationships reflect items measuring impulsiveness. Currently, the most widely accepted personality system is the five-factor model or ‘Big Five’ personality dimensions. Of these, agreeableness and conscientiousness are most strongly correlated (negatively) with offending. More research is needed on the theoretical linkages between personality constructs and offending and on their biological bases. Longitudinal studies are especially needed in which changes in personality constructs are related to changes in offending. The main policy implication of research on personality and crime is that it is desirable to implement cognitive-behavioral skills training techniques to try to counteract high impulsiveness and low empathy.

Promotive and risk processes at different life stages

Part I: Introduction and Methods. Introduction and Key Questions. The Pittsburgh Youth Study: Its Design, Data Collection, and Early Key Findings. Measurement Instruments and Constructs. Part II: Epidemiology of Violence, Serious Theft, Substance Use, Drug Dealing and Gang Membership. The Age-Crime Curve in Reported Offending. Comparing Arrests and Convictions with Reported Offending. Substance Use, Drug Dealing, Gang Membership, and Gun Carrying and Their Predictive Associations with Serious Violence and Serious Theft. Part III: Prediction of Violence, Serious Theft and Desistance. Promotive and Risk Processes at Different Life Stages. Developmental Trajectories of Violence and Theft. Desistance From and Persistence in Offending. Part IV: Conclusions. Conclusions and Policy Implications.

How many offenses are really committed per juvenile court offender

Abstract This article compares juvenile court petitions and self-reported offending between ages 13 and 17 for 506 boys followed up in the Pittsburgh Youth Study. There were 2.4 self-reported offenders for every petitioned offender, and 80 self-reported offenses for every petitioned offense. The prevalence of self-reported offenders stayed constant with age, but the prevalence of petitioned offenders increased with age. Conversely, the individual offending frequency stayed constant with age according to court petitions but increased with age according to self-reports. Therefore, prevalence and frequency did not vary similarly with age, and did not vary similarly in self-reports and court records. With increasing age, more and more of the self-reported offenders were formally petitioned, but they were formally petitioned for fewer and fewer of their offenses. The probability of an offender being petitioned to court increased with the number of offenses that he committed, but the probability of each offense leading to a court petition decreased with the number of offenses committed. There was little overlap between self-reported and official chronic offenders. It is concluded that researchers should always measure both self-reports and official records in studying offending, and that the juvenile court should seek to intervene earlier in delinquency careers.

Why are boys more likely to be referred to juvenile court? Gender differences in official and self-reported delinquency

Abstract This research aimed to investigate explanations of gender differences in referrals to juvenile court. In the Seattle Social Development Project, a prospective longitudinal survey of 808 youths, annual data on court referrals and self-reported offending were collected between ages 11 and 17. Boys were more likely than girls to be referred to juvenile court, and boys committed more offenses than girls according to self-reports. In general, the probability of a self-reported offense being followed by a court referral was similar for boys and girls, indicating that male offenders were more likely to be referred to court primarily because they committed more offenses than female offenders. The exception was that boys were more likely to be referred to court after each aggressive offense, but this gender difference disappeared after taking into account that boys were more rebellious, more likely to be gang members, and more likely to carry guns. These results suggest that gender differences in rates of court referral are unlikely to be attributable to gender biases in law enforcement or juvenile justice processing.

Systematic review of early risk factors for life-course-persistent, adolescence-limited, and late-onset offenders in prospective longitudinal studies

This paper builds on our previous systematic review of prospective longitudinal studies and examines the early risk factors associated with life-course persistent offending (LCP), adolescence-limited (AL) and late-onset (LO) offending. Out of the 55 prospective longitudinal studies which theoretically could possess the relevant information, only four provided information about risk factors associated with the different offending types. An additional three provided data so that relevant analyses could be conducted. The results suggested that there was little evidence that specific early risk factors were associated with specific offending types. There was also limited evidence that specific risk factors predicted specific offending types when criminal career duration was included in the definitions of LCP, AL, and LO offending. However, LCP offenders tended to have a greater number of risk factors, and the magnitude of these was somewhat greater than for AL offenders, who in turn tended to have more risk factors (and of a greater magnitude) than LO offenders. LCP and AL offenders may differ more in degree (in the number and magnitude of risk factors) than in kind (in the specific risk factors that are predictive). Importantly, as the potential criminal career duration was increased in defining the offending types, those with longer careers tended to have more risk factors, but, LCP and AL offenders were not predicted by different risk factors. Much more research is needed on risk factors for offending types defined according to criminal career durations.

Investigating the Impact of Custody on Reoffending Using Propensity Score Matching

Although a range of opinions about the impact of incarceration on later offending have been articulated, there have been very few studies of sufficient methodological quality to allow the effect to be examined empirically. Drawing on a sample of 5,500 male offenders from 1 of 10 regions in the United Kingdom, propensity score matching was used to balance the preexisting differences between two groups of offenders: those who had been incarcerated for their index offense and those who had received community orders involving supervision. Both methods of balancing the group differences (matching/stratification) suggested that 1 year after release, offenders who had been incarcerated were significantly more likely to have committed another (proven) offense. These offenders also tended to commit more offenses and started reoffending earlier than those supervised in the community. Moreover, offenders who had originally been incarcerated were much more likely to be reincarcerated. In line with other emerging evidence, it was concluded that incarceration tends to slightly increase rather than decrease the chances of future offending. Limitations of the research are considered and directions for future research are explored.

Crime and Justice in England and Wales, 1981-1999

Serious property crimes in England and Wales increased from 1981 to 1993 and then decreased, while serious nonlethal violence increased during the entire period 1981-99. Increases in unemployment may have caused increases in property crime rates, and increases in prosperity may have caused increases in nonlethal violence. Increases in the risk of punishment may have caused decreases in crime rates, but increases in the severity of punishment probably did not. Conclusions are tentative because many factors that might possibly influence national crime rates over time could not be measured and controlled for.

Assessing children's empathy through a Spanish adaptation of the Basic Empathy Scale: parent's and child's report forms.

The aim of the current research was to study cognitive and affective empathy in children aged 6–12 years old, and their associations with children’s family environment and social adjustment. For this purpose, we developed the Spanish version of the Basic Empathy Scale (BES), self- and parent-report forms. Factorial analyses confirmed a two-component model of empathy in both self- and parent-report forms. Concordance between parent–child measures of empathy was low for cognitive and affective factors. Analyses of variance on the cognitive and affective components brought a significant effect of age for self-reported cognitive empathy, with older children scoring higher than younger ones. Gender brought out a significant principal effect for self-reported affective empathy, with girls scoring higher than boys. No other main effects were found for age and gender for the rest of the factors analyzed. Children’s empathy was associated with socioeconomic status and other family socialization processes, as well as children’ social behaviors. Overall the new measures provided a coherent view of empathy in middle childhood and early adolescence when measured through self and parent reports, and illustrate the similarity of the validity of the BES in a European-Spanish culture.