Who commits crime and why?

NSCR has a long-standing tradition in the study of perpetrators’ criminal careers. At what point in life do offenders start offending, and when and how escalate their criminal careers? We focus on the explanation of patterns: what factors influence starting, escalating and desisting from crime?

Being born in a criminal family substantially elevates children’s risk to become offenders themselves. But by no means all children who grow up in a criminal family become criminals. How is that possible? Certain life events prevent or adjust a (threatening) criminal career: finding a job, a home or a romantic partner. Beside, we focus on the criminal careers of those who commit ‘new’ crimes, such as cybercrime or terrorism.

Program leader: Veroni Eichelsheim