Retrospective Study of Fire Setting Among Boys in a Child Welfare Sample

• Author: Raina V. Lamade,Alexandra L. Brereton,Robert A. Prentky,Ann Schuler,Austin F. Lee
• Published date: 01 July 2020
• Date: 01 July 2020
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1177/1541204020906425
• Subject Matter: Articles

Article

Retrospective Study of Fire

Setting Among Boys in a

Child Welfare Sample

Alexandra L. Brereton

1

, Raina V. Lamade

2

, Austin F. Lee

3,4,5

,

Ann Schuler

6

, and Robert A. Prentky

1

Abstract

This study aimedto assess fire-setting behaviorswithin a child welfare sample. The youthwere divided

into four groups based on their fire-setting behavior (e.g., no incidents, one incident, multiple minor

incidents,and multiple severe incidents). Groups werecompared based on five factors:overt antisocial

behavior, covert antisocial behavior, global adjustment, psychiatric history, and learning deficits. Fire

setters displayed more delinquentbehavior and had more extensivepsychiatric historiesthan non-fire-

setting youth.Further, the youth withmultiple serious incidentsof fire-setting behaviordisplayed more

delinquent behavior and had more extensive psychiatric histories than any of the fire-setting groups.

These findings clearly suggest that fire setters, as a group, are not homogeneous with respect to

antisocial behavior or psychiatric impairment and that gravity of fire setting increased as a function of

greater psychopathology and greater delinquency when compared to their peers.

Keywords

fire setting, juveniles, psychopathology, antisocial behaviors

In 1979, by Congressional mandate, arson was added as the eighth Part I offense category in the

Uniform Crime Report of Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). In 2017, law enforcement agencies

provided data reflecting 41,171 arsons that year (U.S. Department of Justice, FBI, 2017). It has long

been recognized that the act of deliberately setting fires (“fire setting”) carries an obvious significant

risk of harm to others, including death as well as damage to property (Gruber et al., 1981) and thus

may be seen as a highly problematic behavior. Prevalence rates vary considerably, however,

1

School of Psychology (T-WH1-01), Fairleigh Dickinson University, Teaneck, NJ, USA

2

Psychology Department, University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, MA, USA

3

Research Center for Statistics and Actuarial Science in Medicine, School of Statistics, Xi’an University of Finance

and Economics, Xi’an, Shaanxi Province, China

4

Department of Mathematical Sciences, Bentley University, Waltham, MA, USA

5

Department of Surgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA

6

Justice Resource Institute, Needham, MA, USA

Corresponding Author:

Robert A. Prentky, School of Psychology (T-WH1-01), Fairleigh Dickinson University, Metropolitan Campus, 1000 River Rd.,

Teaneck, NJ 07666, USA.

Email: rprentky@fdu.edu

Youth Violence and JuvenileJustice

2020, Vol. 18(3) 256-273

ªThe Author(s) 2020

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DOI: 10.1177/1541204020906425

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depending on what is construed to be the motive for setting the fire (e.g., intentionally setting fire to

crops and timber as opposed to intentionally setting fire to a dwelling to potentially collect insurance

payments) and the magnitude of damage done (i.e., fires causing minimal damage may not be

reported as arson). Lambie and Ran dell (2011) estimated that the prevalence of f ire setting in

children and adolescents ranged widely from about 5%to as high as 33%. This prevalence, at the

high end, is quite similar to Great Britain, wherein one third of all arsons is carried out by those

under the age of 18 (Canter & Almond, 2002). Juveniles are arrested for arson at greater rates than

other offenses (Caudill et al., 2012).

Perhaps a central reason explaining these highly variable rates of fire setting is the belief among

some that “match play” or “fire play” is commonplace in children, peaking between age 12 and 14

(Jones et al., 2001). A Canadian study reported a lifetime prevalence of 88%in adolescent boys and

81%in adolescent girls (Cotteral et al., 1999). These incidences of adolescent “experimentation”

will typically result in very minimal damage and often go unreported. What is far more concerning is

persistent or repeated fire setting. Persistent fire setting is far more common in boys than girls. A

community study in Australia, for instance, reported that 10%of boys and 3%of girls engaged in

intentional destructive fire setting (Martin et al., 2004). A Scandinavian study of 736 school-age

children, however, reported that 35%set fires “fairly often” (Terjestam & Ryden, 1996), which falls

at the upper end of Lambie and Randell’s estimate. Clearly, it would appear that an important

distinction, albeit not always easily made, is between isolated instances of fire setting set out of

“experimentation” and the more insidious cases of persistent, destructive fire setting. As a focus of

research, fire setting in children and adolescents has received relatively little attention, certainly

when compared to common psychiatric disorders such as anxiety and depression that are frequently

reported in fire setters (Chen et al., 2003).

As noted, child and adolescent fire setters are overwhelmingly male (e.g., Del Bove et al., 2008;

MacKay et al., 2009; Showers & Pickrell, 1987). They typically exhibit significant psychopathology

(e.g., Becker et al., 2004; Del Bove et al., 2008), a variety of other antisocial behaviors (e.g., Del

Bove et al., 2008; Kolko et al., 1985), and marked social/interpersonal deficits (e.g., Chen et al.,

2003; Kolko et al., 1985). A more recent study found that overall risk of fire setting increased as the

number of risk factors within specific domains increased (i. e., criminal history, family history,

individual factors, mental health-related factors; Baglivio et al., 2017).

Psychopathology

Child and adolescent fire setters typically are diagnosed with a range of psychiatric disorders and

display a variety of psychiatric symptoms. Compared to aggressive or delinquent-only youth with no

history of fire setting, fire setters evidence higher levels of withdrawal, social difficulties, anxiety,

cognitive problems, and attentional difficulties (Del Bove et al., 2008). Depression and hopelessness

are frequently noted as well (Becker et al., 2004; Martin et al., 2004). A recent meta-analysis among

juvenile fire setters found that psychopathology, including substance misuse, emotion dysregulation,

depression, self-harm/ideation, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and anxiety were

all associated with fire-setting behaviors (Perks et al., 2019).

Fire setters also display a variety of externalizing problems and acting out behaviors (Becker

et al., 2004). Based on a literature review by Stockburger and Omar (2014), there is a high rate of

comorbidity between mood disorders and impulse control disorders among fire setters as well. Not

surprisingly, conduct disorder (CD) is a significant predictor of fire-setting behavior (Becker et al.,

2004; Gannon & Pina, 2010; Heath et al., 1985). Sakheim and Osborn (1999) reported that 70.7%of

the fire setters in their sample, compared to 36.4%of non-fire setters, were diagnosed with CD. In a

more recent study, Becker and colleagues (2004) found that 31.3%of fire setters were diagnosed

with CD compared to the approximately 6%of non-fire setters. Kolko et al. (1985) found that

Brereton et al. 257