Criminal Recidivism in Pakistan: A Grounded Theory of Social & Environmental Causes and Psychological Consequences

Background: Pakistan is a country where the rate of crime is constantly increasing, with many ex-convicts committing the crime again after getting released from prison, with no knowledge of the antecedents of their recidivism or their psychological consequences. The current study was conducted in order to develop a theory about the social and environmental causes of recidivism along with the psychological consequences for Pakistani recidivist ex-convicts. Methods: The sampling technique used was theoretical sampling, amounting to a total sample of 20 recidivist ex-convicts before reaching the saturation point. A grounded theory method was incorporated for the current research as the objective of the study was the development of a theory on the social and environmental causes of recidivism along with its psychological consequences. A semi-structured interview protocol was used for the purpose of data collection. Whereas the interview transcripts were coded in three phases, including open, axial, and selective coding for theory generation. Results: The individuals shared their detailed experiences of social and environmental factors which contributed to recidivism, and three main antecedents were identified, including negative social experiences, hatred for society, and a toxic environment. Additionally, several psychological symptoms as a consequence of the negative social experiences were also found. Conclusions: The findings of the study have added new information to the concept of recidivism as there were no previous theoretical concepts pertaining to recidivism in the context of Pakistan. These identified antecedents can be useful in strategizing interventions in Pakistan, as currently there are no such intervention programmes in Pakistan due to a lack of prior studies on the subject matter.