Antisocial and Criminal Behaviors of Secondary School Students from the city of Chihuahua in Northern Mexico and Associated Risk Factors

Background: Since the school is a key setting during adolescence, it is crucial to detect deviant social behaviors of individuals in this environment to target corrective measures. Aim: To estimate the prevalence of antisocial and criminal behaviors of secondary school students in the city of Chihuahua, northern Mexico, and to explore associated factors. Methods: Cross-sectional survey with adolescents aged 13-16 years, randomly selected from public and private schools. The Mexican version of the validated antisocial and criminal behaviors questionnaire was applied to 430 students from 41 schools. Proportions and mean scores were computed. Results were stratified by individual and school characteristics. Logistic regression was used to identify factors associated with the probability of reporting at least one criminal behavior. Results: Eating when not allowed (67.5%) and arriving late to school (51.7%) were the most frequent antisocial behaviors, while spending money gambling (17.2%) and damaging objects or property in public spaces (15.5%) were the most frequent criminal behaviors. Men had a higher criminal mean score (1.35 vs. 0.89; p<0.05), and 9th graders had higher mean than 7th and 8th graders for antisocial (7.05 vs. 5.39 and 4.97; p<0.05) and criminal (1.44 vs. 0.98 and 0.94; p<0.05) behaviors. Public schools had a lower antisocial mean than the private (5.52 vs. 6.61; p<0.05). High-income private schools had the highest mean for antisocial behavior (7.44), followed by tele-secondaries (7.06); for criminal behavior, public technical (1.71) and tele-secondaries (2.31) had the highest means. The schools’ lowest academic performance was associated with lower means, especially for criminal behavior. Male sex, higher school grade, low school performance, having failed a year, reporting family problems, and performing specific free-time activities (e.g., hanging out with friends) were associated with a higher adjusted odds ratios of reporting at least one criminal behavior. Conclusion: The most frequent behaviors were quantified, and specific risk groups and factors were identified in order to design and implement preventive programs