Most theorizing about desistance from antisocial behavior in late adolescence has emphasized the importance of individuals' transition into adult roles. In contrast, little research has examined how psychological development in late adolescence and early adulthood contributes desistance. The present study examined trajectories of antisocial behavior among serious juvenile offenders from 14 through 22 years of age and tested how impulse control, suppression of aggression, future orientation, consideration of others, personal responsibility, and resistance to peer influence distinguished between youths who persisted in antisocial behavior and youths who desisted. Different patterns of development in psychosocial maturity from adolescence to early adulthood, especially with respect to impulse control and suppression of aggression, distinguished among individuals who followed different trajectories of antisocial behavior. Compared with individuals who desisted from antisocial behavior, youths who persisted in antisocial behavior exhibited deficits in elements of psychosocial maturity, particularly in impulse control, suppression of aggression, and future orientation.
Keywords psychosocial maturity; antisocial behavior; desistanceIt is well established that antisocial and criminal activity increases during adolescence, peaks around age 17 (with the peak somewhat earlier for property than for violent crime), and declines as individuals enter adulthood; evidence for this so-called age-crime curve has been found across samples that vary in their ethnicity, national origin, and historical era (Farrington, 1986;Piquero, 2007;Piquero et al., 2001). Although there is a substantial literature on factors that contribute to the rise in delinquent activity that takes place during early and middle adolescence (e.g., increases in susceptibility to peer pressure, decreases in parental monitoring), less is known about the decline in antisocial behavior that occurs during the transition to adulthood. Numerous explanations have been offered for this decline, including fatigue (Gottfredson & Hirschi, 1990); entrance into social roles that make continued antisocial activity difficult, such as work, marriage, and parenting (Laub & Sampson, 2001; Uggen & Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Kathryn C. Monahan, Center for Human Development and Disability, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195. monahank@u.washington.edu. (Moffitt, 1993); and psychosocial maturation, which brings with it increases in self-control, stronger resistance to peer influence, and the willingness to forsake immediate gratification in order to achieve future goals (Steinberg & Cauffman, 1996; for a review of theories of desistance from antisocial behavior, see Mulvey et al., 2004). Empirical research on these propositions is sparse, however, and much more is known about the factors that lead individuals into delinquency and antisocial behavior than about the factors that lead them out of it (Farrall & Bowling, 1999;Laub & Samp...