Chronic offenders and the syndrome of antisociality: Offending is only a minor feature!

The aim of this paper is to delve into the psychology of chronic offenders by exploring not only their criminal careers but also their life stories. The syndrome of antisociality is relevant in so far as it explains how delinquent behaviour is a relatively minor aspect of a life characterised by extremely abusive parental relationships, emotional neglect, substance abuse, unemployment, social rejection, and domestic violence. This examination allows for a more integrative quantitative and qualitative explanation of why chronic offenders remained entrapped in a life characterised by an accumulation of failures and losses, in which their persistent offending is only one feature of their life development.