A new longitudinal study based on the Stockholm Birth Cohort Multigen examines whether educational attainment can disrupt the pathway between childhood placement in out-of-home care and criminal offending in adulthood.
About the study
Childhood experience of out-of-home care (OHC) is strongly associated with an increased risk of criminal offending later in life. However, less is known about the factors that may interrupt this pathway. From a life-course perspective, education may represent an important turning point by providing resources and opportunities that reduce the risk of later offending.
The study used data from approximately 14,000 individuals born in Stockholm in 1953 and included in the Stockholm Birth Cohort Multigen. Educational attainment was defined as completion of upper secondary school. The researchers examined three adult offending outcomes—criminal conviction, incarceration and violent crime—and used four-way decomposition analyses to distinguish between the mediating and modifying roles of education. Analyses were conducted separately for men and women.
Placement in OHC was associated with higher odds of all three offending outcomes. Educational attainment accounted for between 70% and 95% of these associations through mediation and interaction, with interaction playing a substantially larger role. The protective role of education was particularly pronounced for severe offending among men.
The findings suggest that educational attainment can substantially disrupt the pathway from childhood OHC to adult criminal offending. They highlight the importance of supporting educational achievement among children and young people in care, while also recognising that educational success requires broader and sustained support to promote long-term resilience.
Highlights
“Completing upper secondary education substantially reduced the association between childhood out-of-home care and adult criminal offending, accounting for 70–95% of the observed relationship.”
Publication details
Hossein, G. (2026). Disrupting the path from placement in out-of-home care to adult crime: Mediation and interaction by educational attainment. Child Protection and Practice, 8, 100272.
Read more: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chipro.2025.100272