Citation

Reef J, Donker AG, van Meurs I, Verhulst FC, van der Ende J. Eur. J. Criminol. 2011; 8(3): 187-197.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2011, European Society of Criminology, Publisher SAGE Publishing)

DOI

10.1177/1477370811403444

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Adult violent delinquency harms individuals, their families and society at large. Knowledge about childhood predictors of adult delinquency could be helpful in defining at-risk children who will develop into violent adults. This topic is rarely investigated in females. We investigated which behavioural problems in childhood predicted long-term disruptive development in a sample of both males and females. In 1983, behaviour problems were assessed in a community sample of 2076 children; 24 years later, 1335 of these children, who are now adults, reported on their violent delinquency. Girls with conduct problems were at risk of long-term disruptive development. We recommend that health professionals be alert regarding girls with conduct problems, because early identification and treatment of high-risk girls might reduce delinquency in adult life.