[Criminal behavior and police records: self-reports from elderly individuals]

As a consequence of demographic changes the crime rates of our society are increasingly influenced by the behavior of older age groups in the population. Hence, both the description and explanation of crime at advanced ages are gaining in importance. As almost no relevant self-report data are available, a regionally representative mail survey among 49 to 81-years-olds was conducted which gathered self-reports on criminal behavior, potentially explanatory variables and previous police records. Almost 50% of respondents reported that they had committed at least 1 out of 14 types of offences at least once since turning 50 years old. Younger cohorts were noticeably more crime prone than older ones, both at the present and in the past. Out of all offences asked about, driving under the influence of alcohol (DUI) was the primary behavior that showed up among the respondents. Apart from the DUI offence crime committed by the elderly is mainly characterized by fraud and property crimes in situations of everyday life by people who are well integrated and economically secure. Main predictors of criminal behavior at advanced ages are the individual sex and social learning mechanisms. The vast majority of people who have been repeatedly recorded by the police throughout their lives perpetuate criminal activities until higher ages. The proportion of offenders whose first police record took place after their 50(th) birthday is 56% which is much lower than estimates derived from official crime data.