Incentives of Female Offenders in Criminal Behavior: An Indian Perspective

Abstract

The review aims to deliberate upon the incentives involved in criminal behavior perpetrated by women offenders in the Indian context. Statistical data denote rising trends in criminal behavior among females with respect to various types of criminal behaviors being executed by female perpetrators in the recent past and present times. There exists a discrepancy between male and female criminal behavior on the basis of the motivation behind criminal acts, neurobiological substrates involved, and dispositional traits responsible for crime. The review attempts to explain the understanding behind such antisocial behavior by explaining links between psychopathology, psychosocial adversities, and female criminality. An insight into the Indian Justice system reveals the relevant history of gender justice and law in India. On the one hand, there has been law protecting the females, while on the other hand, practices of crime have demonstrated an over-advantageous misuse of laws in manipulation by female offenders. The national and international context of scope of intervention requires for an expansive and rehabilitative model for reducing delinquency among females. The intervention is required on a holistic level, dealing with emotional, social, economic, and psychological underpinnings of criminal behavior.

Introduction

Individual psychopathology and a rise in the number of women in act of crime have created increased amount of curiosity within sociological, psychological, and forensic research paradigms (Chesney-Lind and Pasko 2013). Although women are at higher risks of being victims (the receiving end of criminal acts), criminal statistics show that women do commit all types of crime and exert violence, however, their numbers increase only in petty crimes (e.g., shoplifting, theft) compared with severe ones (e.g., murder, manslaughter) (Naffine 2015). Females commit crimes for various social, emotional, and economic reasons. Women are more likely to commit “property crimes” than “violent crimes” because of inequality and financial dependency as their criminal history stems from socioeconomic factors (Naffine 2015).

Interestingly, the present trends show an increase in the number of criminal acts committed by females; and the trend ensues for India, with Maharashtra topping the list of highest rate of female criminality. Yet, this does not quite change the fact that women are far less likely to commit crimes than men, and the extent of violence in their crimes are also drastically different (Cherukuri 2008). These variations in gender are attributed to differences in motives, incentives, situations, and a wide array of biopsychosocial factors (later discussed). Female violence is not easy to confront and accept, but a growing number of people are exploring the idea to rehabilitate female offenders. Female perpetrators need support and treatment to escape the circle of violence and this will lead to a progressive understanding of women in crime (Bhosle 2009).

Method of Conducting this Review

For identifying articles that focused on female offenders, the terms “female offenders”, “female antisocial personality disorder”, “female criminality”, “female juvenile delinquency”, and “female conduct disorder” were used. For identifying articles that focused on specific terms, such as “depression”, “sexual abuse”, “aggression”, “early trauma”, “parenting”, “neurobiology”, “brain”, “psychosocial issues” and other terms were used. These two search strategy results were combined with an “and” statement in data bases with the time frame being specified from 1980 through 2017. The databases used were Medline, PubMed, Google Scholar, and the Cochrane Database on Systematic Reviews. In total, 588 articles were identified, which included reviews, mini reviews, and randomized controlled trials in populations of female offenders.

We included studies of importance with sample sizes of more than 30 participants and that reported either mean scores or percentages with appropriate statistical analysis. This was added to review articles and meta-analyses that were reviewed. All authors reviewed all of the articles and the most relevant ones were chosen for this review. A total of 133 articles were chosen for this review and the most relevant ones were included in this article. This was supplemented with the personal clinical experience of one of the authors (A.D.S.) who works regularly with female offenders and has further insight into the problems faced by them. All the authors are full-time researchers (psychiatrists and psychologists) and working in clinical settings.

Women As Criminals: Statistics from India

According to the 2009 National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data, 6.4% of criminals in India are women. Data on Indian Penal Code crimes state that women comprised 5.4% of the perpetrators of crime in 2001—a figure that rose to 6.2% in 2011 (National Crime Records Bureau 2009). India reportedly has 11 females on the Interpol (International Police Organization) list of most wanted criminals. Furthermore, according to particulars from 2014, from the NCRB, around 1,94,867 women were arrested across India—for a range of felonies from rape to murder to robbery. An increase in crime rate is a case of growing concern in India. States of Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, West Bengal, and Madhya Pradesh are the top five states (in the respective order) in the country that are home to the highest number of female criminals. Recent years (2014 onward) have seen increasing number of female criminals from states of Rajasthan and Gujarat as well. Maharashtra has more female crime perpetrators that outnumber their male counterparts. Cities have shown a relative increase in the share of percentage with respect to females being convicted for crime compared with males being convicted. For instance, Mumbai has seen an increase in the number of women arrested for crime. The number of women arrested in 2014 increased by 23.1%, whereas the number of men arrested for crime increased only by 22.9%. A report released by the NCRB in 2014 states that 1,94,867 women were arrested across India for all kinds of crimes ranging from murder and kidnapping to rape, dacoity, and robbery.

Experts feel that men and women suffer different types of strain, to which they react differently. This difference contributes in explaining one of the underlying theories that proposes a divide between male and female criminality (Odgers et al. 2007).

The NCRB claims that arrests of women are on the rise. What is also changing is the nature of crimes by women, from petty offences to serious ones like assault, kidnap, and even murder. Experts say that violence against women has increased and retaliation is common; women are involved more in domestic violence and economic offences (Freeman and Sandler 2008).

Women As Perpetrators of Crime: A Rising Trend in India?

Not much attention has been given to the research on women's crime traditionally, and hence, there is paucity of theoretical material crimes committed by women (Ahuja 1996). This section tries to build an understanding on women as perpetrators of crimes and what could be the possible reasons behind a rising trend in crimes committed by women, specifically in India. There have been some classic theories that elucidate female criminality. India is a developing country with its own set of challenges, majority of the problems faced due to these challenges are common across sections and have some impact on every strata of the society. Before treading upon the current challenges and see them in relationship with female criminality, it is important to understand the viewpoints of the classical theories on female criminality (Kannabiran and Singh 2008).

Taking the biological viewpoint in consideration first, Caesar Lombroso (Knepper and Ystehede 2012) defines criminality from the prism of biological differences between a male and female. He believed that females are less intelligent than men and hence cannot commit crimes such as the males do (Ferrero 1895). But whenever a female commits the crime it is cruel because they do it in a refined way than how a male would do. In the Indian context or otherwise too, this theory sounds outdated and irrelevant. Second perspective is based on the psychological dimension, in this space, the theory of masculinity by Freda Adler was a new explanation and was also the extension of Sigmund Freud's concept of “penis envy” (Freud 1933). Freud, through his psychoanalytic explanations, believed that females envied the male's possession of a penis, and this postulation explains some aspects of female behavior (notably the castration complex). Similar to the previous theory, this theory too did not find many takers.

Later, the‘Opportunity theory'by Simon came out as a fresh concept, however, this theory lacked data to back itself substantially. The opportunity theory states that access to different opportunities to a female makes her involved in crime; increased opportunity also reduces the rate of violent offending by females but results in increased property crimes by them (LaGrange and Silverman 1999).

A major reason behind increase in crimes committed by women in India is lack of access to economic resources, largely due to limited employment opportunity. Lack of economic resources makes these women to get involved in crimes such as shop lifting, fraud, cheating and so on (Steffensmeier 2001). Most of these female offenders are from economically lower strata of the society; their economic condition makes them commit such crimes (Saxena 1994). Studies shows in India that majority of female prisoners are unemployed (Madhurima 2009). Disparity in economic sector has come out as major reason behind women criminality.

Social causes also contribute to the increasing rate of female criminality, Indian society with its patriarchal approach and conservative nature considers dowry an essential part of marriage and if dowry is not provided, the bride is tortured and may even get murdered by her in laws. Physical abuse or infidelity also results in homicide from the female's side toward her husband or relatives (Ahuja 1996). Growing disparity between the two genders is also responsible for increased cases of violence.

Lack of education also appears to have a significant role in influencing violence (Dreze and Khera 2000). Over the period of time, low levels of literacy rate have been observed among the females in India, which is a major contributor to female criminality (Bajpai 2005). The poor state of affairs in India is assumingly responsible for the rising of female-committed crime rates.

Apart from the aforementioned reasons, social construct and evil practices such as dowry bring more women in the criminality. As researches suggest, majority of the offenders are first timers and most of them are convicted on the charge of dowry murder. Thus, issues such as unemployment, skewed gender parity index, familial separations, and continuous victimization contribute to female criminality need to be addressed to cut down rates of female criminality (Oldenburg 2002)

Nature of Female Criminality

These are the various types of crimes, for which the female offenders are convicted-

1. Prostitution or Sex Delinquency—It is believed that sex delinquents constitute a large part of women offenders. In India, sex-related crimes constitute a significant percentage of crime committed by women (Madhurima 2009). This is an offence, in which the “offender” is in fact a victim.

2. Child Marriage—In India, the second largest arrest of women is under child marriage restraint act, which constituted 32% of women arrested in 1996. In 2000 also, this constituted an important reason for arrest of women (Bhosle 2009).

3. Dowry Murder—Another major cause of arrest of women in India is for dowry murder (Rudd 2001). Here, it seems that women are committing crime against women, however, in reality the mother-in-law represents the patriarchal force.

4. Cruelty by Relatives and Dowry Harassment—Another major cause for the arrest of women is for inflicting cruelty on the daughter-in-law for dowry and also because daughter-in-law is regarded inferior in status (Bajpai 2005).

5. Kidnapping and Abduction—This is another reason for the arrest of women, and a large percentage of their victims are girls and women (Bajpai 2005).

6. Murder—In India too, as the western countries, homicide constitutes a large number of crimes committed by women (Maniyar 2004), of which murder of husbands and other male relatives are because of the cruelty inflicted upon them or for sexual harassment.

7. Theft—In India, drugs, excise violation, passport, burglary, riots, and cheating are other areas in which women get arrested (Bajpai 2005).

Understanding Criminal Behavior in Females

A severe shortcoming in understanding criminal behavior in females is that majority of the studies and research done on decoding crime and criminals focuses on men only, and hence, there are only limited examples, findings, and data available to explain criminality among women. However, after applying a psychosocial perspective, female perpetrators and the causes behind behavior can be fairly described. Indian authors have found that maladjustment in interpersonal relationships within the family is one of the most important causes of the incidence of female criminality. Most female perpetrators have been victims of harsh environments, engulfed by abuse and violence leading to a series of unfortunate events that triggered them to commit crimes (Rao 1981). As a consequence of such social settings, female criminals are born out of extremely stressful scenarios that result in distorted realities of self and incorrect, unlawful decision-making. Aggression and frustration are strongly linked components to criminality. Compared with men, women have different modes of expressing anger. They internalize their frustrations, which get manifested in aggressive crimes. Women are also in continuous conflict between motherhood and making a living for their families, and with biased property and waiver rights against women, property crimes are seen as a likely temptation. Another observation has been that most female perpetrators are from low socioeconomic backgrounds, owing evidence to causes such as poverty, lack of education, broken families, and low employment rates. These factors escalate into complexities such as depression, which is also a major cause of crime, in which women outnumber men (Rao 1981). The causes behind criminal behavior in women are not simply opportunistic, as family, child rearing, and household responsibilities play a major role in their contemplations of whether to commit the crime or not. For similar reasons, guilty female perpetrators as well as drug addicts do not easily confess or go to rehabilitative centers due to the fear of losing their children and family. The complexity of why women commit crimes is in sharp contrast to the relatively simple and often single casual explanations given for male criminals (Rao 1981).

The Table 1 sums up some of the important studies and findings done on female criminality in India.

Table 1.

Summary of Important Findings on Female Criminality in India

Name of study	Methods used	Main findings
Madhurima (2009)	Survey and study in prison	Twenty-five percent of female criminals had a history of their partners being in crime.
		Sex delinquency and prostitution as criminal acts being committed by women.
Curran and Renzetti (2001)	Qualitative study	Three major contexts of female criminality: (i) comparison that understood women's lack of involvement in crime related to men; (ii) studies of prostitution; and (iii) analyses of the depravity of violent women
Islam (2013)	Quantitative and qualitative study	Crime committed by female is increased in recent days because of the marginal nature of women, discrimination in family life and workplace environment, and complex lifestyles
Kaushik (2015)	Study in prison of Indian cities	Patriarchy is the cause of crime against women and by women.

Difference Between Male and Female Offenders

In an effort to get closer to understanding female criminals, many researchers have examined how they are compared to male offenders. Several research compilations present the following trends-

1. Women tended to commit more nonviolent crimes than men, such as property crimes, forgery, theft, and embezzlement (Steffensmeier and Allan 1996).

2. Approximately 62% of female violent offenders had a previous relationship with their victim, whereas only 36% of male violent offenders had a previous relationship with their victims (Vandiver and Kercher 2004).

3. About 8% of violent female offenders committed their offense with at least one male offender; by contrast, <1% of male violent offenders committed an offense with a female offender present (Salekin et al. 1997).

Variations among male and female offenders are seen not only in prevalence rates and types of crimes but also when certain other factors are considered. Historical factors such as the presence of childhood abuse and trauma, especially rates of sexual abuse, vary considerably between the two sexes (McClellan et al. 1997). Research has repeatedly demonstrated that incarcerated women have experienced higher rates of violent victimization, childhood abuse, and neglect than their male offending counterparts (Jespersen et al. 2009).

In addition, the prevalence and types of mental health problems and personality disorders are significantly different when comparing male and female offenders (Covington 2007). Female offenders have higher prevalence rate of mental illnesses than do women in the general population. Mental health problems are also more common in female offenders than in male offenders (Dixon et al. 2004). Incarcerated women consistently report higher rates of mental health problems than male inmates. Besides variation in major mental illness, the prevalence rates and types of personality disorders also substantially differ between male and female offenders (Sevecke et al. 2009). Female offenders tend to receive diagnoses of Borderline Personality Disorder more often than male offenders (Strand and Belfrage 2005).

When comparing the prevalence rates of violence between male and female offenders, research findings vary as some quote female offenders be more violent than male counterparts (Muncer et al. 2001), whereas, other studies claim the opposite argument (Pollack 2004). The type of violence committed by female criminals has also been found to vary significantly from the violence typically perpetrated by males. It has been found that, although the frequency of violent behavior was higher in the female inpatient population, the violence caused by women was generally less severe than the violence committed by men (Pollock et al. 2006).

Research has demonstrated clear differences between males and females in their motivation to commit violence and relationship to the victim. Compared with male offenders, violence committed by female offenders has consistently been described by researchers as more reactive and less instrumental, more often relational, and usually occurring in the home (Monahan et al. 2001; Odgers and Moretti 2002). These differences in violent offense patterns underscore the importance of understanding the emotional elements and relational factors involved in female perpetrated violence.

Psychopathology, Psychopathy, and Female Criminality

The condition faced by female prisoners is worse than what male prisoners face. There are very few Indian studies conducted on the frequency and type of psychopathology and history of other stressful factors contributing to psychopathology in female prisoners.

Having known that female crimes are on an increasing high, it is time we take a step forward to understand female crime, criminality, and the involved component of psychopathology. Studying female crime allows an insight into the effects of poverty, incest, abuse, poor judgment, lack of training, lack of education, and mental illness that might cause the female to deviate from the path of normal, acceptable, law-abiding behavior. Furthermore, examination of female crime enables the development of preventive measures and interventions to deter female crime. Examination of female crime possibly aids and assists in rehabilitative measures for the female criminals as well (Blanchette and Brown 2006).

It has been demonstrated that criminality has links with personality disorders. Higher rates of personality disorders have been consistently observed in female offenders compared with their nonoffending counterparts. Borderline Personality Disorder and Antisocial Personality Disorder are implicated when female criminality is discussed. There is no clear data explaining the trends in India, which calls for greater research in the field (Black et al. 2007). Apart from personality disorders, psychopathy is also implicated in female criminality (alike to criminal behaviors seen in males). Criminality, in general, has a strong link with psychopathy, however, there is a debate about the sex differences along the continuum of psychopathy.

Most research studies conducted on psychopathy have deliberated upon the core behaviors and expressions of interpersonal characteristics of men. There is also an assumption that these behaviors and characteristics are transferable to women. However, these assumptions do not stand much true in scientific stature, since the importance of the concept of “psychopathy” relates to its potential usefulness with regard to issues such as the choice of treatment strategies, treatment evaluation, risk assessment, and the prediction of future violence (O'Leary et al. 2007).

There has been an elaboration on gender differences for psychopathy between males and females considering the differences in the frequency, onset, duration, and intensity of characteristics of psychopathy. Kennealy and colleagues (2007) review the available literature and suggest that females exhibit a delayed onset and lower prevalence of early behavioral problems, as well as lower prevalence of violent and aggressive behavioral problems. Forouzan and Cooke (2005) suggest four key points in the way these differences manifest: (1) behavior, (2) interpersonal characteristics, (3) underlying psychological mechanisms, and (4) different social norms for men and women.

Female Criminality: Neurobiological Substrates

Through a lens of biological understanding, crime is considered as a male dominated phenomenon, where male characteristics are responsible for those crimes (Nee and Ellis 2005). The development of innovative techniques, for example, brain imaging techniques and physiological measurements, can partially explain the increase in neurobiological studies on criminal behavior. There is considerable evidence for reduced physiological arousal, poor frontal brain functioning, hormonal deficits, and genetic predisposition associated with antisocial behavior (Beauchaine et al. 2008; Cornet et al. 2014; Wilson and Scarpa 2012). Despite the several explanations that are proposed to present an understanding for female criminality, there is lack of core evidence-based techniques, on the basis of which female criminality may be understood. One possible reason for the relative absence of neurobiological measurements in criminological research is the idea that it is more complicated to use these techniques compared to traditional instruments such as self-report questionnaires or observational methods.

Links Between Psychosocial Factors and Female Criminal Behavior

In the female offender population, the prevalence of childhood abuse, sexual abuse, and domestic violence is significantly greater than what is seen with women in the general population (Warren et al. 2002). Psychological factors such as frustration, hostility, and feelings of helplessness are proposed to be the cause or the consequence of criminal behavior and in some cases, both (Khurana et al. 2004).

On a sociological side of the phenomenon, feminists hold a view that women experience subordination on the basis of their sex in a patriarchal set up, and this subordination leads to crime. To an extent, it is claimed that patriarchy is responsible for crime against women and also by women. They argue that patriarchy must be ended or at least fundamental changes must be made in gendered institutions and social relationship with the society to curb crime rates. The goal would also be to reduce gender-based discrepancies and inequalities in society, especially son-in-law. This explanation seems most appropriate for India where a large percentage of women are arrested and convicted for dowry harassment and murders (Agha 2009).

Special conditions faced by female prisoners

Women prisoners suffer from greater disabilities than men. The psychological stress caused by separation from children, the unhelpful attitude of close relatives, and uncertainty about the future are various factors that make their life miserable in jail. The antiquated manuals and insensitive approach of the jail authorities add to their woes. There are several critical problems faced by women in prison; most are unmet in the prison environment (Moloney et al. 2009)

Separation from children and significant others

Bloom and Chesney-Lind (2000) argue that mothers in prison face multiple problems in maintaining relationships with their children and encounter obstacles created both by the correctional system and child welfare agencies. An estimated 4–9% of women come to prison as pregnant. Women who give birth while incarcerated are rarely allowed to spend time with their child after birth. Termination of parental rights also affects prison mothers (Bloom and Chesney-Lind 2000).

Lack of substance abuse treatment

Although women offenders are very likely to have an extensive history of drug and alcohol use, a relatively small percentage of women receive any treatment within the justice system. Women substance abusers are more prone to intense emotional distress, psychosomatic symptoms, and low self-esteem than male inmates (Wellisch et al. 1994).

Physical and mental healthcare

In addition to requiring basic healthcare, women offenders often have specific health needs related to their risky sexual and drug-using behavior before imprisonment. Women in prison are at a higher risk for infectious diseases, besides neglected pregnancy and reproductive health needs (Acoca 1998). The impact of physical, sexual, and emotional abuse found in the experience of women offenders also creates a significant need for counseling and therapy (Pollock and Polock 1998).

Vocation and educational programs

Several studies have found that female prisons offered fewer vocational and education program opportunities when compared with those offered in male institutions (Morash et al. 1998).

Sexual abuse

The patterns of sexual abuse and coercion established in the early days of women's imprisonment continue in the contemporary era. The damage of the abuse itself is compounded by four specific issues: (1) the inability to escape one's abuser; (2) ineffectual or nonexistent investigative and grievance procedures; (3) lack of employee accountability (either criminally or administratively); and (4) little or no public concern (Denov 2004).

Disparate disciplinary practices

Although male prisons typically hold a much greater percentage of violent offenders, women tend to receive disciplinary action at a greater rate than men. Research has found that women prisoners were cited more frequently and punished more severely than males (McClellan 1994).

Gender-specific treatment

Bloom et al. (2003) have charged that the criminal justice system often fails to develop a diversity of options for dealing with the gender and culturally specific problems of female offenders. Gender-specific services should incorporate physical, psychological, emotional, spiritual, and sociopolitical issues in addressing these needs. Based on the characteristics of women offenders, their pathways to crime, how they differ from male offenders, and how the system responds to them differently, the need for gender-responsive treatment and services seems clear (Bloom et al. 2003).

Conclusions

Female offenders differ markedly from male offenders on various parameters ranging from the incentive to enter antisocial life to the needs and type of aggression pursued along with the types of crime committed. There are different antecedents when we study the trajectory of male and female offenders. There is a need to understand the circumstances and underlying psychopathology and psychosocial dynamics that lead to female crime and antisocial personality traits and behavior in young girls and females. There is need to develop pathways that can be halted in childhood and there is a need for early intervention in development programs at a school and community level that shall serve as a means to block this pathway. There is also a need to detect and treat disorders in young girls and female adolescents that may be antecedents to criminal behavior. There is also a need to understand the neurobiological differences between male and female offenders, and this may help plan treatment and long-term interventions in both these groups.

Footnotes

Author Disclosure Statement

No competing financial interests exist.

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