Anti-social behaviour and police contact among 13-15 year English adolescents with and without mild/moderate intellectual disability

Emerson, Eric and Halpin, Sarah (2013) Anti-social behaviour and police contact among 13-15 year English adolescents with and without mild/moderate intellectual disability. Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities, 26 (5). pp. 362-369. ISSN 1360-2322

Abstract

Objectives To describe the rates of anti-social behaviour (ASB) among adolescents with/without mild/moderate intellectual disability (MMID). To estimate whether any differences could be attributable to differences in exposure to extraneous risk factors. Design Secondary analysis of the Longitudinal Study of Young People in England. Methods Participants with MMID were identified through data linkage with educational records. Results Parents of children with MMID were more likely to report police contact, children with MMID were more likely to self-report fighting/public disturbance, shoplifting and graffiti. When controlling for differences in exposure to extraneous risk factors, MMID was associated with increased rates of police contact and self-reported graffiti, no difference in self-reported shoplifting, reduced rates of self-reported fighting/public disturbance and vandalism. Conclusions Differences in the rates of exposure to extraneous risk factors play an important role in accounting for the differences in the prevalence of self-reported ASB among adolescents with and without MMID.