“Fire itself is neither good nor evil, it is neutral.  Its character is determined by the eye of the perceiver and the hand of the user.” – Anonymous

Arson/fire-setting is a serious and dangerous crime injuring and killing people, destroying property, and undermining neighborhoods.  Yet, when we speak of juvenile delinquents, arson/fire-setting is not typically what comes to mind.   So, here are the numbers.  Approximately one in four fires is intentionally set, and almost half of those are intentionally started by kids…people under the age of 18.  In fact, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) statistics, in 2003, 51% of those arrested for arson were under 18, nearly a third were under 15, and, believe it or not, 3% were actually under the age of 10.  Approximately 10-15% of fire-setting youth are females.  Juveniles are actually arrested more often for this particular crime than any other age group.  The number of juvenile fire-setters has been shown to be growing each year, and the amount of financial and psychological damage it causes is considerable.  Fires set by minors are more likely than any other household disaster to result in death.  In fact, in 1998 in the United States, juvenile fire-setting and fire-play combined resulted in an estimated 30,800 injuries, 6,215 deaths, over $2 billion in property damage, and more than 400,000 distinct fire incidents.  Between 2005 and 2009 fire-play alone accounted for an annual average of over 56,000 fires associated with losses of over 100 deaths, almost 900 injuries, and almost $300 million in direct property damage.  Clearly, juvenile fire-setters pose a notable risk to themselves and others.  Perhaps the saddest of all of these statistics is the fact that almost 85% of the victims of fires started by children are the children themselves.  In the first part of this two-part series the reader will be presented with:  an overview of juvenile fire-setting; some of the rather sobering statistics related to it; its three sub-groups; some common myths often associated with it; related characteristics; and, individual and environmental predictors.

Over the years children starting fires had been viewed as a problem of “curiosity”, kids playing with lighters, matches or cigarettes, and would generally be labeled as “accidental”.  In fact, studies have demonstrated that a majority of normal children have a meaningful interest and fascination with fire, and close to half have taken part in fire-play.  For many youth this fascination leads to juvenile fire-play.  However, juvenile fire-setting does include the premeditated intentional destruction of property by minors which, as previously noted, can, and often times does, lead to deaths.  Most recent research suggests that juvenile fire-setting is a much more complicated problem than previously thought.  It has been shown to involve a rather varied and diverse population of children who display a wide range of behavioral, emotional and environmental characteristics.  It is the complex nature of this problem which requires a multidisciplinary range of services as part of the extensive treatment intervention.

Although legal definitions of arson vary from state to state, juveniles who are involved in fires resulting in significant property damage, personal injury, or death can be arrested for the crime of arson.  Typically, the legal system takes into consideration the lack or presence of criminal intent, the child’s age, the nature and degree of a prior fire-setting history, and the maliciousness and willfulness of the fire-setting.

Juveniles who set fires fall into three main groups:

1)  Children under the age of 7, and mainly boys.  Typically, fires started by these kids are as a result of curiosity and are accidental.

2)  Children between the ages of 8 and 12.  Although the fire-setting behaviors of these youth is also typically one of curiosity or experimentation, a significantly greater percentage, as compared to the first group, tend to have underlying psychological and psychosocial issues.  These particular individuals will most often continue to participate in fire-setting behaviors until these issues are effectively addressed.

3)  Adolescents ranging in age from 13 to 18.  These kids more often tend to have a longstanding history of fire-setting and fire-play behavior.  The fire-setting incidents in this age group are usually the result of severe psychological/psychosocial conflict, or is deliberate criminal behavior.  These teenagers most often have a history of other behavior problems and school failure.

Interestingly, younger children are more likely to set fires in homes, while older children and teenagers are more likely to set fires outdoors.

Some of the more common myths about juvenile fire-setting are:

• It is somehow related to a history of sexual trauma and/or related to sexual deviancy
• It is a part of a normal developmental stage
• It is related to bed-wetting
• It is done by pyromaniacs
• The juveniles involved share a basic set of deviant personality characteristics
• It is more common amongst kids with lower IQ’s
• Giving kids information about fire and fire-setting will encourage them to want to play with fire
• The fire-setters are sexually aroused by their behavior
• It is related to cruelty to animals

The actual characteristics, one or more of which are commonly found amongst juvenile fire-setters, include:

• A curiosity with fire
• Alcoholism and/or drug abuse in one or both parents
• Poor peer relations
• Victim of bullying
• History of early childhood abuse and/or neglect
• Lack of empathy
• Lack of understanding the danger of fire
• Attachment problems
• Recent parental divorce, separation, or death

Certain individual and environmental predictors have also been identified.  These include:

• Aggression: There has been demonstrated a relationship between juvenile fire-setting and elevated levels of aggression.  Antisocial behaviors among young people may lead to fire-setting as a result of the latter stages of a pattern of antisocial conduct that move from overt symptoms, such as disobedience, to a more covert presentation such as vandalism and stealing.
• Deficits in social skills:  Juvenile fire-setters have often been found to have significant difficulty in relationships, including family, peers, and teachers.  This often leads to diminished opportunities for these youngsters to further develop social skills.  It is these reduced opportunities for friendships that may reduce their psychosocial stability, and as such increase their propensity towards maladaptive behaviors such as fire-setting.
• Concealed antisocial behavior:  To no one’s surprise, studies have demonstrated that juvenile fire-setters often demonstrate disobedience and over conduct problems.  Feelings of resentment, anger, rejection, and others are often expressed in a covert or concealed fashion such as fire-setting.  It is the destructive expression of internalized negative feelings through the use of fire.
• Other social deviance:  Often found in association with juvenile fire-setting are such behaviors as truancy, running away from home, vandalism, stealing, and other forms of property destruction.  A study a few years back found that some 30% of minors involved in fire-setting also met the necessary clinical criteria to be diagnosed with Conduct Disorder.
• Environmental factors:  Children exposed to fire at an early age may increase the likelihood of their engaging in fire-play and fire-setting behavior.  Some supporting research has established a link between juvenile fire-setting and violence in the home, parental substance abuse, or some form of physical abuse.  It has also been demonstrated that lack of parental supervision, lack of parental consequences of inappropriate behaviors, and a lack of remorse on the part of the child are all associated with increased odds of repetitive instances of fire-setting. Fire-setting adolescents are also more likely to have suffered from significantly more emotional neglect than other children of similar socioeconomic backgrounds.

Next Saturday, in Part 2 of this two-part series, I will discuss what can, and should, be done to intercede in this highly destructive and dangerous behavior.