NCJ Number
90512
Date Published
1983
Length
50 pages
Annotation
Studies of five groups of Danish prisoners showed that the most weighty of the criminographic factors affecting recidivism were criminal career and age.
Abstract
The five groups of prisoners surveyed were State prisoners, short-term offenders, sexual offenders, collaborators with the Germans during World War II, and criminal psychopaths. In four of the studies recidivism was defined as offense leading to sanctions more serious than fines and simple detention; however, in the criminal psychopaths' study, it was defined as any new criminal offense resulting in an entry in the penal register. Criminal career and age upheld their separate influences on recidivism when cross tabulated mutually or with other factors. Recidivism was highest for chronic criminals and lowest among first offenders, particularly the late beginners. Recidivism decreased with increasing age, except with the group of sexual offenders, who recidivated over a long span of years. The type of offense influenced the rate and type of recidivism. Differences between the five samples were evident, but between subgroups within the main categories of State prisoners and short-term prisoners, the differences weakened and virtually disappeared when other factors were considered. Different punishments also resulted in different types and rates of recidivism. Predictions based on the criminographic-social factors alone could be improved by a small, insignificant degree by using the psychiatric adjectives in the analysis. On the other hand, predictions based on the adjectives could be improved significantly by introducing the criminographic factors into the analysis. Some problems regarding methods and interpretations of the findings are briefly discussed. Graphic and tabular data are provided, along with 28 notes.