ABSTRACT
By elucidating the changes in criminal thinking, attitudes and lifestyle as offenders begin their journey away from crime, this chapter represents the first step on the journey towards understanding desistance. It also presents the results of an investigation of the psychosocial factors involved in desistance. The chapter identifies whether the factors that are involved in the early stages of change differ from those involved in the later stages. The concept of a 'tipping point' offers a useful framework for conceptualising the onset of the desistance process. Secondary desistance was operationalised as 'no self-reported offending for at least a year' and primary desistance was operationalised as 'no self-reported offending for at least a month'. Criminal thinking styles play a particularly important role during the initial stages of change. It has been argued that there is strong continuity between antisocial behaviour in childhood and criminality in adulthood. Others dispute this, proposing that change is possible for even the most persistent offenders.
