Model Description
Loeber’s multiple pathway model is one of the theories of crime with high validity. The fundamental principle of Loeber’s speculation gives an idea of how criminal behavior starts during the childhood developmental stage and predicts where it can lead. In this model, there are three levels of how disruptive behavior develops.
Model Stages
The first step is the authority conflict pathway that begins before one attains twelve years. A child shows defiance and disobedience to authority figures, such as parents, teachers, and guardians (White, 2018). Some of the behaviors depicted at this stage include staying out late, avoiding school, and having a difficult temperament. Persistent delinquent behaviors can lead to overt or covert pathways.
The second stage of Loeber’s multiple pathway model is the overt pathway, characterized by more aggressive behaviors. A child at this level shows annoying behavior, such as bullying others, physical fights, and gang violence (White, 2018). It becomes easy for a delinquent child to progress to the last stage of criminal behavior following frequent arrests and prosecution. If the behavior persists, one moves to the covert pathway characterized by more grave acts, including burglary, drug peddling, and fraud.
Model Limitations
However, according to Loeber and colleagues, this model is imperfect, and a person can skip a section of the pathway (White, 2018). Sometimes, an individual shows criminal behavior during childhood but changes and becomes a good person later in adulthood.
Personal Opinion
I support Loeber’s multiple pathway model since I have seen people who have traveled down those paths. Most case scenarios happened in the neighborhood where children lack proper parental care. For instance, a child from a disintegrated family where no one assesses the child’s behavior and intervenes in case some disruptive tendencies are observed.
Parents and guardians play a significant role in preventing children from following criminal paths. Proper upbringing and guidance shield the children from being on a multiple pathways model, as described by Loeber (Tehrani & Yamini, 2020). Therefore, the theory explains how criminal behavior can develop in children and gives insights into preventive and intervention strategies.
References
Tehrani, H. D., & Yamini, S. (2020). Parenting practices, self-control, and anti-social behaviors: Meta-analytic structural equation modeling. Journal of Criminal Justice, 68. Web.
White, H. R., Conway, F. N., Buckman, J. F., & Loeber, R. (2018). Does substance use exacerbate escalation along developmental pathways of covert and overt externalizing behaviors among young men? Journal of developmental and life-course criminology, 4(2), 137-147. Web.