Abstract
Increasing attention is being given to the issue of desistance or cessation in adult criminal careers. We contribute to this research by considering how informal and formal social Controls affect recidivism among 556 sex offenders placed on probation in 1992. We conduct an event history analysis of reoffense, based on the predictions of Sampson and Laub’s and Gottfredson and Hirschi’s control theories. We build on these perspectives by examining how informal social Controls condition the effects of formal social Controls generally and across offense types. We find less recidivism among offenders with stable job histories, particularly among those in court-ordered sex of fender treatment. The results add both to theoretical formulations concerning desistance and recidivism and to policy formulations directed at growing prison populations.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 61-87 |
| Number of pages | 27 |
| Journal | Justice Quarterly |
| Volume | 17 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Mar 1 2000 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:* We gratefully acknowledge the assistance of Will Alexander and Denise Hesselton, and of the Minnesota Department of Corrections, for providing access to the data for this paper. We also thank the three anonymous reviewers for their helpful comments. Points of view or opinions are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the Minnesota Department of Corrections. Direct all correspondence to Candace Kruttschnitt, Department of Sociology, University of Minnesota, 267 19th Avenue South, Minneapolis, MN 55455. ** Candace Kruttschnitt is a Professor and Chair of the Department of Sociology at the University of Minnesota. She has published extensively on the subject of female offenders, including both reviews of research pertaining to gender differences in etiology and primary analysis of criminal court sanctions. Most recently, she has undertaken a study (funded by the National Science Foundation) which seeks to replicate and extend Ward and Kassebaum's research on women's adaptations to incarceration. The research examines both temporal and institutional variations in women's prison experiences in California over a 30 year period. *** Christopher Uggen is assistant professor of sociology at the University of Minnesota. His research addresses crime, law, and their relation to employment. Currently he is examining the socioeconomic determinants of illegal earnings (with Melissa Thompson) and the civic consequences of felon disenfranchisement (with Jeff Manza).
