When the Seeds Are Sown

“Train up a boy according to the way for him; even when he grows old he will not turn aside from it.” (Proverbs 22:6) This Bible maxim goes to the heart of the matter. The key is to ‘train the boy,’ not the young man, but earlier​—the boy. Why is it necessary to start when the child is so young? Because thought and behavior patterns are established in infancy and childhood.

True, some negative traits are built in at birth because we are all born imperfect. (Romans 5:12) As the Bible says: “Foolishness is tied up with the heart of a boy.” However, that scripture adds: “The rod of discipline is what will remove it far from him.”​—Proverbs 22:15.

Many criminals try to justify their conduct by harking back to childhood influences, blaming their parents, teachers, and others. Dr. Samenow draws a different conclusion: “Criminals claim they were rejected by parents, neighbors, schools, and employers, but rarely does a criminal say why he was rejected. Even as a young child, he was sneaky and defiant, and the older he grew, the more he lied to his parents, stole and destroyed their property, and threatened them. He made life at home unbearable . . . It was the criminal who rejected his parents rather than vice versa.”​—See page 8, “Profile of a Budding Career Criminal.”

Yes, the seeds of criminal behavior are often sown in childhood and sometimes are unwittingly nurtured by overindulgent parents. Dr. Patterson, psychologist at the Oregon Social Learning Center, believes that “most delinquency may well develop due to ineffective parenting skills.” He refers to parents “who are unable to maintain clear rules, monitor compliance and handle even minor violations with nonphysical punishment.”

Dr. Samenow concludes: “The criminal child’s departure from parental and societal expectations involves more than isolated acts. Beginning as early as during the preschool years, patterns evolve that become part of a criminal life style.” (Italics ours.) As a consequence, some psychologists are now turning their attention to the field of crime prevention in childhood by offering help to those parents and children who have a potential delinquency problem.

[Box/​Pictures on page 8]

Profile of a Budding Career Criminal

As a child, the criminal is a being with an iron will, expecting others to indulge his every whim. He takes risks, becomes embroiled in difficulties, and then demands to be bailed out and forgiven.

The parents become the first in the criminal’s long string of victims.

The child constructs an increasingly impenetrable barrier to communication. He lives a life that he wants to hide from his parents. What he does he considers none of their business.

The delinquent lies so often and so long that his lying appears to be compulsive. Yet the lying is totally under his control.

The child has contempt not only for his parents’ advice and authority but for the way they live, no matter what their social and economic circumstances. To him, having a good time is what life is all about.

When there are other children in the family, they are victimized by their delinquent sibling, who bullies them, helps himself to their belongings, and blames them when any discipline is about to be meted out.

The delinquent chooses to associate with risk-taking youngsters who are doing what is forbidden.

The delinquent refuses to subordinate himself to anyone else’s authority. He chooses instead to engage in something more exciting, often illicit.

The parents of these children often do not know where their offspring are, not because of negligence but because of the youngster’s ingenuity in concealing his activities.

The delinquent takes but rarely gives. He does not know what friendship is because trust, loyalty, and sharing are incompatible with his way of life.

Part of the delinquent youngster’s social scene is alcohol use, which begins even before adolescence.

The criminal rejects school long before it rejects him. He exploits the school, using it as an arena for crime or else as a cover for it.

What others consider getting into trouble, he perceives as a boost to his self-image.

(Please note that one or two of these factors alone may not indicate that a child is a budding career criminal. But where many are combined, there is a basis for concern.)