Around the world, a large number of children are unfortunately abused or neglected by their parents.  This usually affects the child’s behavior in a bad manor and lasts throughout their childhood, but how does this affect their adulthood?  I believe that people who are neglected or abused as a kid by their parents are much more likely to commit a crime or have the behavior of a criminal. In my opinion, neglection and child abuse almost seem to draw people to crime like moths to a flame.

Within prisons, many people are said to have been abused or neglected as a child.  “14% of all men in prison and 36% of all women in prison in the USA were abused as children,” writes childhelp.org.  It has also been estimated that that neglected and abused children are nine times more likely to be a criminal or experience-like activities by this website.  “Being abused or neglected as a child increases the likelihood of arrest as a juvenile by 59 percent, as an adult by 28 percent, and for a violent crime by 30 percent,” says nij.gov.  It has also been observed that children who are sexually abused are more likely to commit crime than those who are not sexually abused.  “People who are sexually abused as a child are five times more likely to commit a criminal offense as an adult,” explains abc.net.

Although child abuse and being neglected greatly increases the odds of criminal activity, it must also be noted that people who have experienced either of the two are not guaranteed to become a criminal.  The odds of criminal activity are only increased when a child is abused or neglected.  This not only shows how children can be affected by neglection and abuse, but it also shows how large of a problem the two are in America today and must be solved.