What is the long-term outcome of boys who steal at age eight? Findings from the Finnish nationwide “From A Boy To A Man” birth cohort study

The aim was to study predictive associations between childhood stealing behavior at the of age 8 years with later psychiatric
disorders, criminality or suicide attempts and completed suicides up to the age 25 years in a large representative population-based
birth cohort.

The sample includes 2,592 Finnish males born in 1981 with information about stealing from both parents and teachers. Information
about psychiatric disorders, criminality, suicide attempts requiring hospital admission and completed suicides was gathered
from four different Finnish nationwide registries until the study participants were 25 years old.

One out of ten boys had stealing behavior during the previous 12 months. After adjusting for parental education level and
conduct problems or hyperactivity (i.e. potential confounds), stealing at eight independently predicted substance use and
antisocial personality disorders, and high level of crimes. Stealing was also associated with completed suicide or severe
suicide attempt requiring hospital admission. Comorbid stealing and frequent aggression had the strongest predictive association
with any psychiatric diagnosis, crime and completed suicide or severe suicide attempt, while stealing without aggression was
not associated with any of the negative outcomes.

Stealing accompanied with aggressivity at age eight is predictive of wide range of adversities. However, no increased risk
was observed among the group with stealing behaviors but without aggression.