Pathways explaining the reduction of adult criminal behaviour by a randomized preventive intervention for disruptive kindergarten children.

OBJECTIVE   This study aimed to identify the pathways through which a preventive intervention targeting young low-SES disruptive boys could result in lower crime involvement during adulthood. METHOD   The preventive intervention was implemented when the children were between 7 and 9 years and included three components (i.e. social skills, parental practices, teacher support). Participants (N = 250) were randomly allocated to the intervention or to a control group. The tested pathways included antisocial behaviour, school engagement, parental supervision and friends' deviancy, both during early and middle adolescence. Crime involvement was assessed in early adulthood. RESULTS   The intervention reduced adult criminal involvement via reduced early and middle adolescent antisocial behaviours. CONCLUSION   This study adds to the small group of studies that have examined the mechanisms through which early preventive interventions might impact distal outcomes.