The Analysis of Criminogenic Factors in a Sample of Drug Addicts: The Relevance of the Social -Environmental Element in Antisocial Behavior. Pilot Study

Domenico Piccininno and Giulio Perrotta*

Introduction: Behavior is the consequence of cognitive processes that originate from multifactorial products, such as genetic predisposition, education received, and experience gained from the family and social context of reference. The deficiency or defect of one or more of these factors could cause psychopathological shaping in the individual that can foster or nurture deviant or antisocial behavior. It is necessary to investigate what are the main factors underlying the criminal phenomenon. 

Materials and methods: The literature up to August 2024 was reviewed and 40 articles were included in the research. The survey was conducted through the administration of an experimental Questionnaire-type sociological survey (QA2CPICB). 

Results: In this pilot study, a population of 49 individuals (42 males and 7 females) most with criminal records and currently addicted to narcotic substances / drugs / alcohol, aged between 24 and 57 years (M: 39.7; SD: 9.1), residents or permanent residents of the “Emmanuel” Communities of the Apulia Region (Italy), were selected. The variable of age is negatively correlated with the areas investigated by the QA2CPICB (as age increases, the impact of the factors investigated decreases). 

Conclusion: Variables that can describe lived life influences (such as traumatic childhood events, critical family and work issues, economic poverty in adulthood, and lack of stable and lasting affective-emotional support), psychiatric disorders, and social-environmental influences (such as degraded, poor, and/or criminal family and social environment) are negatively correlated with the age variable and serve as positive reinforcers for maintaining the pathological state of drug addiction and engaging in deviant or criminal conduct to procure the necessary economic liquidity. Early intervention, reeducation and economic-work support can act as a deterrent and negative reinforcer on drug addiction, promoting patient recovery and limiting further legally relevant behavior in the justice system.

Key points

1. The social-environmental factor plays a central role in maintaining criminal conduct. 2. Criminal conduct is the prerequisite for nurturing the substance-dependence state of drug addicts. 3. Early intervention, reeducation and economic-work support can act as a deterrent and negative reinforcer on drug addiction, promoting patient recovery and limiting further legally relevant behavior in the justice system.

Keywords:

Published on: Oct 15, 2024 Pages: 21-27

Full Text PDF Full Text HTML DOI: 10.17352/ojt.000046
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