Bridging immigrant crime, acculturation, and the life course: a broader perspective

Abstract

Research generally supports that immigrants engage in less crime than the native-born; however, theory behind the immigrant-crime link has a foundation largely rooted in assimilationism. While this offers valuable insight, an immigrant-centered perspective focusing on individuals and crime has yet to be offered. We position the life course as a valuable lens to understand how immigrant socialization, largely informed by acculturation, serves to protect against—though in some cases exacerbate—the risk of criminal offending. Building off prior perspectives in the life course tradition, we offer that the immigrant-crime link may be explained through a life course lens by emphasizing how acculturation works with six concepts: linked lives (i.e., social linkages), time and place, life-stage, situational imperatives, agency, and accentuation.

Keywords:

• Immigration and crime
• life course
• acculturation and crime
• immigrant experience
• theory

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank Bianca Bersani for providing feedback on an early version of this manuscript. We would also like to show appreciation for the reviewers and their helpful comments.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Chris Guerra

Chris Guerra is an assistant professor in the Department of Criminal Justice and Security Studies at the University of Texas at El Paso. His research focuses on immigration and antisocial behavior. His work seeks to explore the mechanisms involved in this relationship.

Jessica M. Craig

Jessica M. Craig is an associate professor in the Department of Criminal Justice at the University of North Texas. Her research interests include juvenile justice and life course criminology, with a focus on the consequences of child maltreatment.