Family, Delinquency and Crime

Running Head: Social Studies
Family, Delinquency and Crime
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Social Studies
The “cycle of violence” and the intergenerational transmission of mistreating children
The cycle of violence also referred to as the intergenerational transmission of violence posits that victimized children grow up to victimize others. Research indicates that children who grow up in aggressive and violent households are likely to become violent in their future relationships. Caspi and colleagues (2002) argue that the cycle of violence could be genetically transferred and attribute it to the functional polymorphism in the gene encoding the neurotransmitter-metabolizing enzyme monoamine oxidase A (MAOA). MAOA is said to moderate the effect of maltreatment. Maltreated children with a genotype conferring high levels of MAOA expression are less likely to develop antisocial problems. The findings may not be conclusive but partly indicate why some maltreated children blow up and victimize others, while others do not. ...