The influence of background factors on recidivism in crime: Factors differentiating - among serious criminal male subjects - those who relapse into crime from those who quit their criminal career.

The aim of the present study was to enlighten the criminal career, focusing on factors of importance for quitting an ongoing severe criminal career. One hundred male recidivists, aged 30-38 years and incarcerated in prisons in the region of Stockholm, Sweden, were studied. The subjects filled in a questionnaire regarding background factors, e.g., debut in crime and addiction, upbringing, values, and quality of social networks. Inclusion criteria for participating in the study were that the subject had at least three prior convictions to prison and at least a total of one year of prison served. In a follow-up three years after the release from prison, registered criminal activity was obtained and used in yielding four recidivism groups. These groups were then studied regarding differences in the collected background factors. The results indicated significant differences within certain areas between those who kept out of conviction and those who showed severe recidivism during the three year period studied. The subjects free of convictions displayed better quality in upbringing conditions and relationships, they also differred in their evaluation of the criminal lifestyle. Furthermore, they had a later and less varied debut in addiction, nor did they live with addicted partners. The results are discussed in terms of an interactional model of the crime quitting process.