Category: Adolescence

The Necessity For Juvenile Justice Fix

To begin, Juvenile justice is people who are not old enough to be responsible for criminal acts they either did or did not commit. In the beginning the first ever juvenile justice system they were focused on the kids. There was no punishment instead they used rehab and it was highly encouraged.” Juvenile court proceedings were closed to the public and juvenile records were to remain confidential so as not to interfere with the child’s or adolescent’s ability to be rehabilitated and reintegrated into society.

The very language used in juvenile court underscored these differences. Juveniles are not charged with crimes, but rather with delinquencies; they are not found guilty, but rather are adjudicated delinquent; they are not sent to prison, but to training school or reformatory”(nap.edu) This means that the children and teens criminal records were kept between them and the court, this was so their records would not ruin their future life.At the beginning of the 19th century children as young as the age of seven could be get a death sentence or sent to prison for committing a crime. But in 1899 a juvenile court act was passed and the juvenile court acts states that they were going to specifically focus on rehabilitation and treating the children rather than punishing them.”The act required separation of juveniles from adults when incarcerated and barred the detention of children under age 12 in jails. The act also provided for informality in procedures within the court.

The idea of the juvenile court spread rapidly. “(Schlossman, 1983)Later on in 1925the first juvenile courts were created in every state except for Maine and Wyoming. Have you ever thought about how the Juvenile Justice system is flawed? This system does have many flaws but if we work together there are things that we can fix. Many people don’t notice how teens can be affected by many things. It is very common for children who were antisocial during their childhood to become juveniles. “These developmental paths give families, communities, and systems the opportunity to intervene and prevent the onset of antisocial behaviors and justice system involvement.” (youth.gov) This means that parents or even teachers if the pick up and pay close attention can catch the signs early and prevent them. There are many ways that you can prevent juvenile delinquency. For example, after school recreation programs, mentoring programs, bullying prevention programs and classroom and behavior management programs.

Justice is very important to me because I think it’s important for them to have a fair opportunity for the guilty teens to change. You should care about my issue because if these teens are not sent to rehabilitation centers and just straight to juvy in the long run when they get out of juvie or jail and are adults they are going to have no right from wrong and just get themselves put back in the same place. For example,”Many youths with disorders go untreated simply because of a lack of mental health services available to them in the community. This can result in disruptive behavior leading to an arrest and sometimes confinement in a juvenile facility –even though most have committed minor, non-violent offenses.” Sometimes the parents or guardians are not able toget the help they need for there children and teens. For example, Even if treatment is available in the community, families often have difficulty accessing care because their insurance coverage is inadequate and it is not always clear whether public sources of funding will cover these services.

There are many ways that juvenile justice can be fixed. For example teens acting out can be prevented before it even happens. If parents see any type of behavior where their child is acting out they should do anything they can to prevent it like if the are antisocail when younger maybe sighn them up for a sport or activity.

The Perspectives On Juvenile Delinquency

The Social Reaction Theory or Perspective stresses poverty, insufficient education, skills, and sub -societies values in correlation to crime rates. Poverty, persistent exposure to violence and drugs, easy access to firearms, unstable family life and family violence, delinquent peer groups, and media are highly correlated with juvenile delinquency. These risk factors that are integrated commonly in juvenile delinquents lives, affect their upbringing and marginalize these individuals for having little to not success in society. Anthropological, medical, biological, psychological, psychiatric and analytical approaches are a subjective approach to juvenile delinquency. Geological, economic, social, sociological and cultural approaches are an objective approach to juvenile delinquency. In conclusion to all of the factors, societal and economical factors stress significantly on individuals. Strain theory, expresses association with juveniles and crimes. Everyday stress of the risk factors generates stress, and increases the possibility of committing and offense. Overt and Covert delinquency is a significant in the United States that is still being studied today. The main reason is yet to be known as why crimes are committed by juveniles, but researchers believe the risk factors listed above are defiantly triggers.

Growing up, children always look up to those in uniform who “protect” them, but little do they know the components behind those careers, that make that career what it is. The Criminal Justice System is an asset to the US, in maintaining society and controlling the norms of behavior that is acceptable. There are multiple institutions that encompass the justice system that not all countries have which is fortunate to the US. Law officers are positioned to uphold and enforce to the law to the fullest extent if needed. Arresting, gathering and maintain evidence, investigating in some cases, and concluding police reports are some of the many duties associated with Law enforcement. In essence, keeping the peace and protecting life and property are also a main function of law enforcing. If the community doesn’t support the police, they aren’t going to be as effective. With all that is going on in the world as of 2019, being young and a minority puts fear into law enforcement because the complexion of skin. Minorities do fear that there are policemen out there who are not doing their duties to the full and honest extent that they abided by. “The probability of being black, unarmed and shot by police is about 3.5 times the probability of being white, unarmed and shot by police.” ( PLOS One, 2015). Strong relationships of mutual trust between police agencies and the communities they serve are critical to maintaining public safety and effective policing, as well as raising successful law abiding citizens.

The cooperation of community members to provide information about crime in their neighborhoods, and to work with the police to devise solutions to crime and disorder problems. With recent incidents of police brutality, Community relations play a huge role in impacting the outcome of certain situations. Creating a bond amongst a community with local law enforcement, can create a safer environment for now and for the future, because it will teach people to stop fearing one another in non-life threating situations. Corrections plays a very consequential role in the criminal justice system. The Criminal Justice system is usually held to imply reform and rehabilitation. At a young age those components are important to for a successful life back into society. According to a journalists for the Atlantic paper, juvenile delinquents make up 1,200 of the 1.5 in federal and state prisons.

Incarcerated youths are commonly known to offend around the ages of 15 years old to 18 years old. Not many of them are subject to release there for enforcing adult punishments on them, and strict supervision. This make is very hard for juvenile delinquents to renter society and rehabilitate in a healthy manner as a free individual. A viral ted talk given by Evan Foss reveals a story about a young man, Christopher, who was brought up who could not afford to go to school, so he had stolen over 30 computers from best buy to pay for it, this man is now a manager for a large bank in Boston because Foss saw that he needed guidance and help. A day in jail could have and probably would have made the situation worse. Arraigning Christopher would give him a criminal record, making it more difficult for him to get a job, setting in motion a process that describes today’s failed system of criminal justice. Christopher would be unable to find employment, education or stable housing with a criminal record and without a job. Without those factors stabilizing his future for success Christopher would be more likely to continue committing crimes, increasing the severity of the crime. The correspondence with the criminal justice system and Christopher, could possible result in him reentering multiple times afterword’s all at the stupendous cost of his adolescent years, family and social groups. The public safety concern that is at question would be tragic. There is two choices the system has when a kid commits a crime and that is to either: prosecute to the full extent of the law, or take a step back and ask if burdening young people with criminal records is the right thing to do every time. Foss asks, “why are we spending 80 billion dollars on a prison industry that we know is failing, when we could take that money and reallocate it into education, into mental health treatment, into substance abuse treatment and to community investment so we can develop our neighborhoods?” Which is very true, rehabilitation is needed before incarceration.

The judgement of a criminal case involves court processing. The prosecutor, then, decides if the occurrence will succeed into a criminal case, wherein the suspected wrongdoer will be accused of the wrongdoing. In the event that the investigator chooses to squeeze charges against a suspected guilty party, the settling procedure advances to arraignment. During arraignment, the suspect is perused the charge/s recorded against the person in question. With the guide of a legitimate direction, the suspect (presently a respondent) enters a supplication of either blameworthy or not liable. The arraignment advances into preliminary to decide the blame of the suspect (if the not-blameworthy supplication was not entered). In case of a blameworthy decision, the guilty party is indicted and the court will decide the sentence. A court conviction compares to a sentence, which is the punishment forced on the guilty party who has been seen as blameworthy because of the first preliminary. The sentence is distributed by the judge, who pursues recommended rules, gauges, and constraints in rebuffing convicts. By and large, Joined together States laws license capital punishment for convicts who have carried out horrifying violations, in spite of the fact that the act of the death penalty is dependent upon the situation. On a basic level, the Government Passing Punishment Demonstration of 1988 sentences to death all guilty parties indicted for murder. Yet, by and by, the death penalty is more an exemption than the standard. For instance, the vast majority of the sentenced psychological oppressors waiting for capital punishment presently can’t seem to be dispensed their sentences.

The Criminal Justice System is the ideological institution responsible for the protection, preservation of, and adherence to the civil rights and civil liberties expressed within the Constitution of the United States (Criminal Justice, 2015). Law Enforcement, corrections, and the adjudication all play the role and act together in trying to maintain the most respectable and functionality of the Criminal Justice System. Each system uses their own judgments and ethical procedures to apply the law. There have been many miscarriages to justice where innocent people were sent to prison. I have yet to deal with the criminal justice system besides a speeding ticket, but I know that I play a role in my justice system. Some people may not think they do, but they do. There is no harm in voicing your opinion and there is no harm in fighting for what you believe in.

Just as these three components have a huge impact on our societies wellbeing we have an impact on the system, if society as a whole speaks up, for the rights of their own and young individuals who may have committed a mistake.

Work Cited

1. Foss, E. (2019). A prosecutor’s vision for a better justice system. [online] Ted.com. Available at: https://www.ted.com/talks/adam_foss_a_prosecutor_s_vision_for_a_better_justice_system
2. Meade, Anthony C. “The Labeling Approach to Delinquency: State of the Theory as a Function of Method.” Social Forces, vol. 53, no. 1, 1974, pp. 83–91. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/2576840.
3. Journals.plos.org. (2019). PLOS ONE: accelerating the publication of peer-reviewed science. [online] Available at: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/
4. Shaffer, David R. Social and personality development. Nelson Education, 2008.

The Peculiarities Of Juvenile Justice

ABSTRACT

This paper will discuss the juvenile justice system in the United States. This paper will use a fictional “brother” as a scenario to help explain how the juvenile justice system works. It will also discuss ten “steps”, or sections, of all the intersecting aspects juvenile face in the justice system. It will focus on the history of robbery, many schools of criminal thought, landmark juvenile court cases, and how a minor goes through the juvenile court system.

For starters, my brothers crime will help establish and explain how robbery works in the juvenile justice system. My brother, age 17, was walking down a street in Newark at night. Our family has been struggling financially for awhile, but this night was different. My brother just got laid off from his job, putting our livelihood in danger. My brothers dream was to be able to help our family move out of our dangerous neighborhood and get a house in the suburbs. My brother was not the only one to get laid off either, many of his co-workers who live in our tight grouped neighborhood lost their jobs as well. My brother had to act fast so we could still have a roof under our head. As he was walking home one night, with rent being due on his mind, he was getting very nervous and scared on what will happen next for our family. After hearing stories from his former co-worker friends about how they had to steal and rob just to survive, my brother started to think on it. With no other option to get money fast, he results to stealing. He camps out a dark alleyway by our house, in hopes that some stranger will cross his path. Finally, it happens. He immediately jumps into action, grabbing the unsuspecting stranger and yelling “Give me your wallet or I am going to hurt you”. The stranger, afraid for his life, gives my brother his wallet. My brother grabbed the wallet full of cash, which he later found out was worth $500 in cash, and ran from the scene, not leaving a trace. After he came running home that fateful evening, with a frantic look on his face, My mother and I knew something was wrong. With rent being paid and we had no source of income at the moment, we raised concerns on how that was possible. The very next day I confronted my brother about what happened that night. He told me the truth about the incident, and I told him he has to turn himself in. That very same day, my brother walked into the Newark Police Station and told them everything what happened. My brother has never committed a crime before this day. What he just committed was a robbery.

Robbery is defined as “the taking of, or the attempting to take, anything of value from the care, custody, or control of a person or persons by force, or threat of force or violence, or by putting the victim in fear”(Findlaw). Many people began to use the term robbery incorrectly when describing the crime. This is due to how many different types of crime there are about stealing: Larceny, Grand Theft, Burglary, and many more. Robbery siverities are also vast, some include whether the perpetrator was armed, if injury was inflicted on the victim, and the quantity of the money/items taken. According to the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, OJJDP, “the juvenile arrest rate for robbery declined substantially after its mid-1990s peak, falling 72% from 1994 through 2018” (Rate Trends). In 1994 was an all time high for underage kids committing robbery, 183.5 robberies committed for every 100,000 kids between the ages of 10-17. While the recent data suggests that it has fallen to 51.7 kids per 100,000 committing the criminal act. This database provided by OJJDP also breaks down the perpetrators into sex and race. The most common gender, by far, are males. In 1994, 324.6 males between the ages of 10-17 per 100,000 kids committed robbery (Ibid.). During the same year, only 34.5 females committed the act. In 2018, the number of both sides have dropped considerably. Males only accounted for 89.8 robberies and 12 robberies were committed by females. Also, according to the same source, the most common race of the perpetrator is either African-American and/or Hispanic. In 1994, 727.4 and 568.2 robberies were committed, respectively (Ibid.). Overall, the most common juvenile committing robbery would be an African-American male between the ages of 10-17. While my brother is a male and in this age range, he is caucasian, which account for 13% (Ibid.) of all juvenile robbery cases. As reported by the Bureau of Justice Statistics, 23% of all robberies result in the victim being harmed and 37% result in the robber getting away with nothing (Harlow). As for gender, age and ethnicity, the victim is usually a single white male in mid twenties.

The history of robbery goes all the way back to the Romans and Greeks (JRank). While robbery back then was not necessarily its own crime, but combined under theft. Theft in these times include, but not limited to, acts such as larceny, burglary, and many other acts involving stealing one’s possession (Ibid.). However, the United States justice system was heavily influenced by British Law. Under British law in the early 15th century, robbery was “was punishable by death or mutilation” (Ibid.). This practice was in place up until the mid 19th century, when the last execution “for simple robbery took place in 1836”(Ibid.). Similarly, in the United States, robbery was a felony punishable by death from its founding all the way up to as late as the early 1960s. In the 1960’s, Ten states made some forms of robbery a capital offense, “as twenty-four people were executed for robbery offenses between 1930 and 1962” (Ibid.). While the landmark case of Roper v. Simmons in 2005 made executing juveniles unconstitutional, prior to this a total of 226 juveniles had been executed between 1973-2004 (JJIE). The youngest juvenile ever executed in the United States was a Cherokee Native named James Arcene (Ibid.). James was “hanged in Arkansas in 1885 for a murder-robbery he helped commit when he was 10 [years old]” (Ibid.). Now a days, robbery, without a weapon, varies depending on how much the perpetrator stole and what state the act was committed. The usual sentencing for juveniles for unarmed robbery with no previous criminal record, like my brother, could be sentenced between one and three years in prison (Ibid.).

Many schools of thought come into play when it comes to juvenile delinquency. For starters, one major school of thought is the classical theory. Created by Cesare de Beccaria, classical theory refers to a crime is committed after a person considers the pros and cons. It focuses on how the decisions criminals, in this case juveniles, commit a crime. In this school of thought, it is told that those who commit crimes do so because of either greed or personal gain. My brother can easily fall in this category because of the need of that $500 to pay the bills. While not accessing the pros and cons correctly, $500 for 1-3 years in prison does not seem like the best idea, he did so for personal need. Another school of thought is biological theory. This theory, derived from Cesare Lombroso, encompasses the idea that biology is a major factor when it comes to people committing crimes. For instance, this theory may suggest that because my brothers head is a certain shape, or that he has hazel eyes compared to blue, or even a certain gene in his DNA was responsible for his actions in that alley way.

Another category theory diving deep into the psyche of criminals psychological theories. In this area of thought contain two main theories: psychoanalytic and social theory. Psychoanalytic theory dives deep into the psyche of the criminal, especially on their personality (Psychoanalytic). One famous contributor to this theory is Sigmund Freud. Freud looked at the psyche of the brain, and determined that the id, ego, and superego impacted how criminals are formed (Ibid.).

Social learning theory focuses on trauma criminals may have faced in their childhood. This theory encompasses everything to do with child development and factors influencing whether one conforms to or deviates from societal rules are those experiences while they’re young and still developing. It also has to do with learning from others, such as ones parents. While this theory could also be applied to my brother because of the economic hardships our family faced in the dangerous parts of Newark. This would affect my brother if he experienced any mental trauma at a young age, which he never truly never had a specific instance of trauma, the gloomy environment of criminals all around may have played a part in why he did what he did.

Original jurisdiction is defined as the authority that hears a case through to its conclusion. This can comprise of geographical or any specific court. One important aspect of this matter is when appeals are put in place. For instance, “ If the matter needs to be appealed, or if certain other questions come up that must be decided by a higher court, the case is then taken to a different jurisdiction” (Ibid.). When this happens, it usually falls to an appellate court, where the case achieves it ruling. Courts are divided up in many different fashions, such as state, county, districts, circuits, and many more. Courts are organized like this in order to address many aspects of cases, such as if the case is criminal or tort, and if it is criminal, the severity of the crime (Ibid.). Courts also have the power to act on the minors behalf. This is referred to as Parens Patriae.

There are many landmark cases that influenced how the juvenile court system works in the United States. The aforementioned court case of Roper v. Simmons was a major win for juveniles around the country. The case made the execution of minors unconstitutional due to the 8th amendment, no cruel or unusual punishment (Roper). Another case that helped to give more rights to juveniles was Re Gault (1967). This gave several rights to juvenile offenders, such as the right to counsel, cross examine witnesses, notice of charges, and several more. Lastly, Re Winship (1970) set the precedent in juvenile criminal cases from preponderance of evidence, to beyond a reasonable doubt (Howell). While this case does not really affect my brother, since he turned himself in and is going to plead guilty, it still is an influential case for minors.

Officers of the law are given a certain amount of leeway when it comes to policing. This is referred to as police discretion. This is influenced by many outside factors such as race, age, gender of both the perpetrator and the officer (Study). Examples of discretion and decision making for officers include, but are not limited to, whether the officer performs a search and if they issue a traffic ticket to someone. Since my brother turned himself in, police discretion is not even available due to the fact that the officers had no choice but to process him.

Legal factors are facts about the offense being charged (Howell). This includes the evidence, the severity of the crime among other things. Age of juvenile is considered a legal factor for certain types of offenses as well (Ibid.). In the state of New Jersey, what my brother committed was a first degree crime, due to the fact that he threatened the victim (Ibid.). There were no weapons involved in my brothers crime, except the threat of my brother using his fists. The eyewitness account would be, of course, the victim who’s wallet got stolen. A factor that would help my brother is the fact that he has no prior criminal past, so the court will look at him without a predisposition about my brother.

Compared to officers, the prosecutors have more responsibility, and discretion. As stated before, juvenile court systems used to base whether an offender is guilty or not on preponderance of evidence before Re Winship. Before then, judges can easily incarcerate the offender The ruling in this case sensitized prosecutors to be more careful and discriminating when charging juveniles with certain offenses. This and other cases help transition juvenile court cases to be more and more like adult justice systems (Howell). While this is still not fully the case, for instance, juveniles do not have a 6th amendment right, the right to a speedy trial. This is mainly do to the aforementioned Parens Patriae doctrine (Ibid.).

One route an offender will be taken through the juvenile court system is being charged in adult court. However, that is determined mostly on the severity of the crime and the offender’s history. With no criminal history and the fact that he did not cause physical harm to the victim, it is highly unlikely he would be charged as an adult. Usual crimes that get juveniles charged as an adult are armed robbery with a deadly weapon, murder and other serious violent crimes.

Waiver of counsel is also about waiving a right to trial. . My brother would most definitely take this route due to the fact that it is still a serious offense, and that he turned himself over to the authorities. A plea bargain would be the only possible way to receive a lower sentence. Even though my brother was a first time offender, he was well aware of the consequences that came to the criminal act. There are several types of waivers available to the offenders. For starters, one type of waiver is automatic. Automatic waivers occur automatically based on the juveniles age and type of defense. This type of waiver leaves little in the means of discretion for the state. Another one is Judicial waiver. This waiver gives the judge the ability to waive jurisdiction. Judicial waivers can be categorized in three different means: discretionary, mandatory, and presumptive (Ibid.). Discretionary waivers give the judge power to use discretion in “determining to waive the case of retain jurisdiction” (Ibid.). Mandatory waivers make the judge waive jurisdiction to the criminal court. The judge can do this when there is enough evidence to prove the offender did do the crime. This would most likely happen in my brothers case, due to the fact my brother turned himself in, with the victims wallet in hand, that is more than enough evidence to allow a mandatory waiver to happen. Lastly, presumptive waiver make the burden of proof shift from the state to the minor (Ibid.). This is the most subjective of the three because the minor has to prove if they can be rehabilitated or not.

The Juvenile system has alternatives to prison/jail time and fines. One such alternative are community based. These would most likely not be available towards my brother do to the severity of his actions. Community based alternatives try to rehabilitate offenders who have violated the law to a lesser degree. For instance, a underage minor who is charged with consumption of alcohol would be sentenced to alcoholics anonymous classes instead of jail time. These programs not only lessen the amount of juveniles in jail, but help teach minors about important lessons along the way.

Juvenile justice system has the same four goals as the adult system. For starters, deterrence tries to stop future want to be criminals to do the act. If laws, and the punishments that follow if they are broken, are strict enough, minors may not want to do the action. Such as in the classical theory, but this time the cons outweigh the pros. While this did not work against my brother, his pros were special in the essence that it was either he stole the cash, or we would get evicted, there was little to deter him from doing this. Secondly, rehabilitation is necessary in order to bring the offender back into society. If done correctly, the criminal will not break the law again, but will be a functional member of their community. While this isn’t necessary for my brother compared to other offenders, the court system might deem that some type of rehabilitation is needed in order for him to leave his sentence. Third, retribution encompasses the act of punishing the offender. Without this, more people would break the law because there is no punishment. This goal is to make sure that the criminal pays for the actions they have committed. Lastly, incapacitation is needed so that criminals are away from society, especially needed for violent and frequent criminals, unlike my brother. The juvenile justice system provides two types of confinements for convicted offenders: non-secure and secure. Non-secure confinements place the minor in more rehabilitation environments such as halfway houses, foster homes, wilderness projects, etc. Secure confinement, however, leans more towards retribution and deterrence side of the spectrum. These types of confinements are harsher than those of non-secure. Some examples of secure confinement are boot camps and training schools. Secure confinement is more used as a last resort, if the minor is violent or other reasons. Juvenile aftercare help youth who have been incarcerated be placed in residential care. These programs allow for a smoother transition from the jail life back into society. Juvenile detention centers are centers that provide educational programs, counseling, recreational programs and many other things that allow the offender to easy back into society and away from their criminal behavior (Ibid.).

Overall, while the juvenile criminal justice system does not grant the offender as much rights as an offender in adult court, juvenile justice system focuses more on the mental health of the child and emphasises the rehabilitation of the offender. It focuses on how to ease the young criminal back into society the best possible way, by providing an environment to erase all the anger and violence out of them while still providing guidance back into their community. As for my brother, it is nearly impossible for him to miss out on jail time, which is a shame but necessary punishment for his actions. With a good plea bargain and his non existent criminal record, and the fact that he turned himself in all can at least help him get a reduced sentence.

Work Cited

1. Harlow, Caroline Wolf. “Robbery Victims.” Bureau of Justice Statistics, https://bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/rv.pdf.
2. Howell, Amy. “ROLE OF DEFENSE COUNSEL IN JUVENILE DELINQUENCY PROCEEDINGS.” Defense Delivery Systems , http://www.ncids.org/JuvenileDefender/Role/Role Statement.pdf.
3. “Juvenile Arrest Rate Trends.” Juvenile Arrest Rate Trends, https://www.ojjdp.gov/ojstatbb/crime/JAR_Display.asp?ID=qa05263&selOffenses=4.
4. Linn, Amy. “History of Death Penalty for Juvenile Offenders.” JJIE, 16 Feb. 2016, https://jjie.org/2016/02/13/history-of-death-penalty-for-juvenile-offenders/.
5. Roper v. Simmons. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.oyez.org/cases/2004/03-633.
6. “New Jersey Robbery Laws.” Findlaw, https://statelaws.findlaw.com/new-jersey-law/new-jersey-robbery-laws.html.
7. “Police Discretion.” Study.com, Study.com, https://study.com/academy/lesson/police-discretion-definition-examples-pros-cons.html.
8. “Psychoanalytic Theory & Approaches.” Psychoanalytic Theory & Approaches | APsaA, https://apsa.org/content/psychoanalytic-theory-approaches.
9. “Robbery – The History Of Robbery.” The History Of Robbery – Law, Punishable, Death, and Crime – JRank Articles, https://law.jrank.org/pages/1984/Robbery-history-robbery.html.

The Main Factors That Contribute To Juvenile Delinquency Among Jamaican Males

What is deviance in the Jamaican context? The definition of what is called deviant in the Jamaican society can sometimes be seen within the culture (Walker &Morgan,2011, p.52). Deviance within the Jamaican society is anything that goes outside of the country’s norms (Stone,1992). In other terms deviance in the Jamaican context can be anything from theft, murders, rape or truancy (Stone,1992). Research has shown that generally speaking of every 10 adolescents, 4% will turn to some form of deviance (Hanimoglu, 2018, p.). In same Jamaica has shown an 80% increase in deviant behaviour from male adolescents from the late 90s to 2000s, that is a cause for concern for the country’s young male, (Walker & Morgan, 2011, p.51). According to Professor Barry Chavannes, most of Jamaica’s criminals are young adolescent males. He further noted that these individuals weren’t born deviant, but became bi-product based on a number of factors within the society (Walker & Morgan, 2011, p.52). The occurrence of juvenile delinquency in the Jamaican society is due to contributing factors such as; poor family structure, lack of education and the influence of their peers.

Poor family structure can increase the likelihood of the Jamaican male becoming a juvenile delinquent. Families with poor structures can be viewed as families which exhibit conflicts, misbehaviour, and often child neglect or abuse on the part of both and or one parent which occurs continuously. Research showed a correlation between discipline and socioemotional health within a specimen of Jamaican Adolescents. The statistics or result showed that the shocking amount of teenager participants experienced physical punishment within their families. The study found a significant association with physical punishment and with an unfavourable psychological and behavioural result or outcome, the study showed that teenager who reported being victims of physical discipline showed a greater tendency to developmental adaptation than those who are non-victimized peers. Although, a different study showed that more industrialized culture, sociodemographic factors had no association with cases of physical punishment. Furthermore, there was a statistical significance with the gender on all socioemotional dimensions and behaviour problems but not with physical punishment (Smith, Springer, & Barrett, 2010). Empirical research has shown that favourable child outcomes are facilitated by parental nurturance and responsiveness facilitate. In contrast to, correctional or disciplinary and neglectful parenting put children at risk for unfavourable result. Cruel parenting is a serious risk factor for children’s aggressive and violent behaviours; hostile and abusive families produce violent children and youth as proposed by the research literature. Furthermore, a positive correlation is seen between physical punishment and aggressive behaviour. Research has shown a relationship between boys who lacked close identification with their fathers (Smith & Green, 2007, p. 419).

Research has shown that a person raised in a single parent family shows a statistical relationship of increased risk of delinquency and antisocial behaviour exist. Furthermore, the socioeconomic conditions of these family and other risks, such as disciplinary styles and problems in supervising and monitoring children, show that these other factors account for the differential outcomes in these families (Austin, 1978).

Another factor provoking delinquency among adolescent males in the Jamaican society is the lack of education. It is not only seen in their misbehaviour in the classroom, resulting in unfavourable judgement from teachers or peers but also in their poor performance academically. Students who are not performing well can be linked to having limited educational aids such as the textbooks needed for their studies, they may also have little opportunity to engage in educational pursuits such as going on field trips due to high costs. It is not always the case, but males coming from low socio-economic families are often unable to attend school regularly, attend poor quality schools, and prone to school dropouts thus being encouraged to become hustlers at an early age (Smith, 2007). The chaotic atmosphere of secondary schools’ learning environment can also affect students to perform poorly in their academics (Asikhia, 2010). Most untrained teachers blame students other than themselves when they fail to carry out expected conduct at the end of the lesson or in examinations, the school failure undermines a student’s interest and commitment to school and learning. Therefore, limited educational opportunities could lead to a lack of jobs or further studies. This may result in teenagers seeking out crime as a means of survival. Adolescent males who drop out of school and show no interest in education may be linked to having a mental illness. Students with a mental illness may display behavioural deficits such as violent behaviour, and difficulty in paying attention. Such issues can affect classroom learning and social interactions of the students. Basieo-perira stated male students with mental illnesses such as conduct disorder, and attention deficit is a higher risk for delinquent behaviours.

Lastly, peer pressure can be seen as a contributing factor to delinquency among adolescent males. The average Jamaican male as purported by Professor Barry Chavannes is influenced by their peer group, and as such are prone to adopt their behavioural patterns (Walker & Morgan, 2011, p.52). Delinquent adolescent males are normally lacking in their sense of self-worth which usually leads to low self-esteem. Furthermore, in a search to find oneself they may mimic the attitudes and behaviour of their peers for an identity. Mattias (2010) noted that the most unvarying finding in criminology is that juvenile delinquency is fundamentally a group phenomenon. Also, the peers of juvenile delinquents are delinquent to a much greater extent than persons in association with non-delinquents.

In addition to the above, juveniles have innate feelings; the need to be accepted and loved; hence they crave a sense of belonging from a particular group whether it be at school or within the community in which they live. As Mattias alluded to in his foreword to Tremblay (1993), Acts of vandalism are praised within youth groups and in return, they are rewarded with acceptance, appreciation, and information. This suggests that juveniles will adapt to the characteristics of a deviant group by participating in delinquent activities in order to feel accepted. (Mattias, 2010).

Of the many theoretical perspectives given in explaining juvenile delinquency in Jamaica, the effects of family structure, education, and peer pressure are amongst the strongest influencing factors. The lack of parental supervision and monitoring are as a result of poor family structure and may result in children becoming deviant. Also, poor educational opportunities and low academic performance can limit a juvenile’s potential and render them susceptible to peer pressure the end product of which often result in delinquent behaviour.

References

1. Asikhia, OA. (2010). Students and teachers’ perception of the causes of poor academic performance in Ogun State: secondary schools [Nigeria]: Implications for counselling for national development. European Journal of Social Sciences vol 13(2) pages 229-242
2. Basto-Pereira, M. (2018). Persistence in crime in young adults with a history of juvenile delinquency: The role of mental health and psychosocial problems. The International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction, vol 16, (2), 496-506
3. Chevannes, B. (1999). What You Sow Is What You Reap: Violence and the construction of male identity in Jamaica, 10(7), 241-264. doi:10.9737/hist.2018.658.
4. Hanimoglu, Egemen (2018). Deviant behaviour in school setting. Journal of Education and Training Studies Vol. 6 (10)
5. Mattias, S., (2010) Delinquency, social skills and the structure of peer relations: Assessing criminological theories by social network Theory, Oxford Vol 89 issue 2
6. Moser, C., & Bronkhorst, B. V. (1999). Youth violence in Latin America and the Caribbean: costs, causes, and interventions. LCR Sustainable Development Working Paper No. 3 Urban Peace Program Series, 10(7), 241-264. doi:10.9737/hist.2018.658
7. Smith, D.E., & Green, K.E. (2007). Violence among youth in Jamaica: A growing public health risk and challenge. History Studies International Journal of History, 10 (7), 417-424. doi:10.9737/hist.2018.658.
8. Smith, D. E., Springer, C.M., & Barrett, S. (2010). Physical discipline and socioemotional adjustment among Jamaican adolescents. Journal of Family Violence, 26 (1), 51-61. Doi: 10.1007/s10896-010-9341-5.
9. Smith, D. (2007). Poverty and child outcomes: A Focus on Jamaican Youth. Adolescence, vol 42 issue 168 page 837
10. Stone, Carl (1992). Values, Norms and Personality Development in Jamaica. Retrieved from http://gtuwi.tripod.com/stonearticle.htm.
11. Walker Brodie, S. & Morgan K. (2011). Factors implementing delinquency in Jamaican and African-American adolescents. International Journal of Business and Social Science, Vol 2(6)

Beyond Gangs And Delinquency: Comprehending Female Delinquency

Group delinquency, and also juvenile and female delinquency, had been in the focus of theoretical research of classical American sociology, mainly through the view of gang delinquency and delinquent subcultures, and more significant and polemical theories which emphasize irrational explanations of gang delinquency (Bordua, 1961).

Cohen (1955) and Cloward and Ohlin (1960) combine strain and cultural deviance models, mainly derived from Merton’s (1951) theory of social structure and anomie. In deep, these axioms attempt to demonstrate that deviance, as an unacceptable behavior distant from traditional or accepted norms and values, is a catapult toward delinquency. Furthermore, for these authors, environmental aversion, social control, and subcultural deviance conduct directly to delinquency patterns (Agnew, 1985).

A strong classical point of view is Cohen’s (1955) characterization of the delinquent subculture as nonutilitarian because it includes some unaccepted activities, especially theft, which are not oriented to calculated economic ends. Also, the delinquent subculture, the gang, is, at this point of view, a way of recouping the self-esteem destroyed by middle-class-dominated institutions (Bordua, 1961). It is also important Cressey’s (1964) epidemiology of crime trough differential social organization, which supports Merton’s deviant behavior as the comprehension of crimes in the working-class population.

But, in general, this sociological and instrumental conception responds to the theoretical inheritance that on the culture of poverty was reflected in various disciplines of the social sciences of the second half of the twentieth century, mainly after the studies of Lewis (1966). This multidisciplinary tradition focuses, in broad strokes, on the impotence of the impoverished majorities, which as a genetic condition, is perpetuated throughout the generations. Precisely because of this, and despite its many merits, the original investigations of gangs and crime show little understanding of the political-economic conditions that make poverty inevitable for some.

Juvenile delinquency and a deeper theoretical comprehension

With the arrival of more comprehensive and inclusive researches, there are more convincing notions that support the influence of social bond to commit theft and violent crime among male and female adolescents (Chui and Chan, 2012; Peterson, Lee, Henninger, and Cubellis, 2014), and also the dilemmas of cultural transmission and its solutions through a cultural pedagogy focused on values (Kováts-Németh, 2016).

Baz and Fernández-Molina (2017) and Nihart, Lersch, Sellers and Mieczkowski (2005) weigh up school, parental monitoring and, especially, police legitimacy, toward the formation of young people’s attitudes. In this last branch, many interesting investigations reveal the increasing interactions between younger citizens and law enforcement. In 2015, there were nearly 1 million arrests of adolescents under age 18, and in 2014, there were over 3 million arrests of young people between the ages of 18 and 24 (Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, 2018).

These neo-comprehension of subcultural patterns is assumed sometimes as the street culture, by authors like Jacobs and Wright (1999), who explain that “street culture subsumes a number of powerful conduct norms, including but not limited to the hedonistic pursuit of sensory stimulation, disdain for conventional living, lack of future orientation, and persistent eschewal of responsibility” (p. 165). In this way, the theoretical-methodological gap is open to the study of other social indicators, such as race, gender and nationality, and its link with the norms of subculture and delinquency in young people.

Undoubtedly, one of the most worrying and relatively poorly studied edges is female crime, primarily in American society, accustomed to hearing about drug or interracial crimes, but little concerned about the problems of women who commit or are vulnerable to commit any criminal act.

Female delinquency: Damocles’ sword

Even though significant progress has been made in the empowerment of women, it remains a reality that, in the study of juvenile delinquency, more attention is paid to boys, perhaps because “girls’ delinquent acts are typically less chronic and often less serious than those of boys (Zahn et al., 2010). Even under this bias, it has been shown that these minor offenses may mask serious problems that girls are experiencing, as running away from home or even sexual and physical victimization.

This suggests that although their offense behavior may not appear to be very serious, these girls may be fleeing from serious problems and victimization, some involving illegal behavior by adults, which in turn makes them vulnerable to subsequent victimization and engaging in other behaviors that violate the law such as prostitution, survival sex, and drug use. (Zahn et al., 2010, p. 3)

Some statics show two issues in this regard: girls are the fastest-growing segment of the juvenile justice population, and also they enter the juvenile justice system at younger ages than boys. To prove this, in 2007, there were 2,5 million arrests for females of all ages, and a quarter were girls under 18; also, of all youth incarcerations, 42 % were 15 and younger but only 31 % of boys were 15 or younger. Otherwise, issues from differential social organization, as race and ethnicity, sexual orientation, abuse and victimization, emotional and mental health, and family issues, can also affect each offense type and severity, which, in the case of prostitution and commercialized vice, is still more significant in girls than boys (NCCD Center for Girls and Young Women, 2009).

As Hoyt and Scherer (1998) explain, female delinquency traditionally emphasize sexuality as either the cause or expression of females’ delinquent behavior, because “the «deceitful» nature of women (derived from practice at faking sexual arousal), along with precocious biological maturity, were proposed to account for female delinquency” (p. 82). For that reason, female delinquents are mostly seen differently, with a social stigma. But, with the change of generations and scenarios, women must be seen with a holistic comprehension, and statics can demonstrate how integrated they are today to American society, mainly through employment data.

Is a fact that, today, in American society there are more than 70 million women in the civilian labor force; almost 47 % of U.S. workers are women, and more than 39 % of women work in occupations where women make up at least three-quarters of the workforce (U.S. Department of Labor, 2017). Even, in August 2019, unemployment rates for young people are very similar, and for example, in the ages 20 to 24, 7,9 % of men and 6,2 % of women are unemployed (Bureau of Labor Statics, 2019). These statics represent a very important climbing for women’s participation in the U.S. labor force, taking into consideration that it is almost double than participation in 1948.

Female delinquency, and youth delinquency in general demand further attention from social sciences. But, first of all, it must be said that young offenders need more the application of efficient and creative pedagogical strategies to extend the age which they begin in the criminal act, in these complex times where there should be less scientific plethora and more socio-political action.

References

1. Agnew, R. (1985). A Revised Strain Theory of Delinquency. Social Forces, 64(1), 151-167.
2. Baz, O., and Fernández-Molina, E. (2017). Process-based model in adolescence. Analyzing police legitimacy and juvenile delinquency within a legal socialization framework. European Journal on Criminal Policy and Research, 24(3), 237-252. doi: 10.1007/s10610-017-9357-y
3. Bordua, D. J. (1961). Delinquent Subcultures: Sociological Interpretations of Gang Delinquency. Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 338(1), 119-136.
4. Bureau of Labor Statistics. United States Department of Labor. (2019). Labor Force Statistics from the Current Population Survey. Retrieved from https://www.bls.gov/web/empsit/cps_flows_current.htm
5. Chui, W. H., and Chan, H. C. O. (2012). An Empirical Investigation of Social Bonds and Juvenile Delinquency in Hong Kong. Child Youth Care Forum, (41), 371-386.
6. Cloward, R. A., and Ohlin L. E. 1(1960). Delinquency and Opportunity: A Theory of Juvenile Gangs. New York: Free Press.
7. Cohen, A. K. (1955). Delinquent Boys: The Subculture of the Gang. Glencoe: Free Press.
8. Cressey, D. R. (1964). Crime and Differential Association. Springer: Dordrecht.
9. Hoyt, S., and Scherer, D. G. (1998). Female Juvenile Delinquency: Misunderstood by the Juvenile Justice System, Neglected by Social Science. Law and Human Behavior, 22(1), 81-107.
10. Jacobs, B., and Wright, R. (1999). Stick-up, Street Culture, and Offender Motivation. Criminology, (37), 149-173.
11. Kováts-Németh, M. (2016). Dilemmas of Cultural Transmission. Universal Journal of Educational Research, 4(7), 1698-1707. doi: 10.13189/ujer.2016.040723
12. Lewis, O. (1966). The culture of poverty. Scientific American, 215(4), 19-25.
13. Merton, R. K. (1951). Social Theory and Social Structure. Glencoe: Free Press.
14. NCCD Center for Girls and Young Women. (2009). Getting the Facts Straight about Girls in the Juvenile Justice System. Retrieved from http://www.nccdglobal.org/sites/default/files/publication_pdf/fact-sheet-girls-in-juvenile-justice.pdf
15. Nihart, T., Lersch, K. M., Sellers, C. S., and Mieczkowski, T. (2005). Kids, Cops, Parents and Teachers: Exploring Juvenile Attitudes Toward Authority Figures. Western Criminology Review, 6(1), 79-88.
16. Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. (2018). Interactions between Youth and Law Enforcement. Retrieved from https://www.ojjdp.gov/mpg/litreviews/Interactions-Youth-Law-Enforcement.pdf
17. Peterson, B. E., Lee, D., Henninger, A. M., and Cubellis, M. A. (2014). Social Bonds, Juvenile Delinquency, and Korean Adolescents: Intra- and Inter Individual Implications of Hirschi’s Social Bonds Theory Using Panel Data. Crime & Delinquency, 1-27. doi: 10.1177/0011128714542505
18. U.S. Department of Labor. (2017). 12 Stats About Working Women. Retrieved from https://blog.dol.gov/2017/03/01/12-stats-about-working-women
19. Zahn, M. A., Agnew, R., Fishbein, D., Miller, S., Winn, D., Dakoff, G., … Chesney-Lind, M. (2010). Girls Study Group. Understanding and Responding to Girls’ Delinquency. Washington D. C.: U. S. Department of Justice.

Juvenile Crime And Violence As A Effect Of Socioeconomic Conditions

“Environment is the parent of revolution and crime.” similar to Aristotle’s quote. Juvenile crime is the effect of the social environment that kids grow up in. Each case is unique and it is caused by different factors as family, drugs, education… It’s one of the nation’s most serious problems. Every country cares about their child, but what is really worrisome is not the short run trend but their sense that violent crime has been climbing steadily for a long time and the future will only bring further increases. Unfortunately this problem does not just occur only in ireland, but around the world. Children are the future, we are not gonna allow the juvenile delinquency to keep going. In our country children have a good quality of life but there are some problems such as poverty, discrimination.. which is then what causes juvenile crime. The irish system of juvenile justice is currently under review. The juvenile Justice Bill will reform most aspects of the systems such as legislation and services by a wide range of community sanctions and penalties instead of special school sentences and the raising of the age of criminal responsibility from seven to 10 years as much more things.a

According to Youth Justice Action Plan, 2014-2018, who is reinventing the rights of children and tries to redirect them in the right direction we have created a law. In every society, youth is the most important part as we depend on them for the future. With this law we try to make young people aware to take advantage of their qualities and their lives… Since 2008 when the first National Juvenile Justice Strategy started, juvenile delinquency has decreased. In 2013 there were 5365 juvenile offences, representing a 41% drop on 2010’s figure of 9126

Unicef ​​can be a good example of what has been done on a global scale to solve this problem. This association has declared several laws, such as the Riyadh Guidelines (1990) or the publication of the Manual for the Measurement of Juvenile Justice Indicators in coordination with nations to raise awareness about the prevention of juvenile delinquency (2006)

Ireland is in the same position as most of the countries in central Europe, as they have more or less the same economy and the same way of life. We can’t find any relevant information about agreements with ireland to solve this problem but there are some laws that are common among ireland and some other countries.

Factors Contributing To Juvenile Delinquency In Malta

Summary

The main aim of the current research is to identify the main factors of juvenile delinquency among the youths in Malta. Statistics show that the Juvenile delinquency rate in Malta is continuously increasing and it is important to know from where it is originating. If the factors will be known, then it will be easier for authorities and professionals to find strategies to help the youth to not get introduced to delinquency at a very young age. Furthermore, consequently to the results, more awareness can be promoted directly in certain areas and hence will lead to minimising juvenile delinquency.

Background

“It has long been a problem why some children steal and not others, why some play truant, or why some set fires and damage property”(Bridges,1926,p.531). Delinquency occurs not in a vacuum, but in a social context. This does not mean that individual factors, such as biological makeup and psychological functioning, do not play a role in delinquency. Nor does it imply that individuals do not make choices to engage in delinquent behaviours. However, it recognises that individuals, and the choices they make, cannot be adequately understood without considering the social contexts within which they live and act.

From the literature reviewed, youths’ interactions with parents, peers and schools are thought to exert powerful influence on their involvement in delinquent activities. They can help insulate a child from delinquency, but they can also encourage illegal activities. Kids who fail at home and at school, are considered prone to sustaining a delinquent career over the life course.

· Family

Family is the main institution which provides the primary socialization of young children, and so, the relationship determines the adolescent behaviour through the life-course. Youths growing up in a household characterized by abuse, conflict, and tension, whose parents are absent or separated, and who lack family love and support, will be the ones most likely to engage in violence and delinquency.

Saputra found that youth who were abused or neglected as children were more likely to engage in delinquent and adult criminal behaviour than youth who were not subjected to such treatment. Helfer and Kempe contend that “once the developmental process of a child is insulted or arrested by bizarre child rearing patterns, the scars remain. One should not be surprised, then, to find that the large majority of delinquent adolescents indicate that they were abused as children” (Helfer,Kempe, 1976)

Aggressive, delinquent behaviour is the means by which many abused or neglected children act out their hostility towards their parents. Some join gangs, which furnish a sense of belonging and allow anger to be expressed in group-approved delinquent acts.

· School

Many of the underlying problems of delinquency, as well as their prevention and control, are intimately connected with the nature and quality of the school experience. Poor academic performance has been directly linked to delinquent behaviour. Henson Reymen and Crosswell state that “failure to accept the routine of attending school actually instils in children that they do not have to comply with societal norms and that they can do as they please”(Reimer;Cresswell, 2017). School failure will lead to early school- leavers and therefore in the involvement in antisocial behaviour.

· Peers

Young people invest a lot of energy in social life. Being part of a group serves as a source of status. Peers are essential to the shaping of personality, and they provide young people with plenty of room to develop their identity. So, acceptance by peers has a major impact on young people. Youths who are rejected by their peers are more likely to display aggressive behaviour and disrupt group activities by behaving antisocially.

Weerman link delinquency to the rewards gained by associating with like-minded youths and their formation of law-violating youth groups and gangs. Lower-class youths who find it difficult to achieve success and a sense of pride through legitimate means, are open to achieving status in such a group.

Understanding why a minor commits a crime at an early age is essential to preventing future crimes from happening. Addressing the issues that has led to the choices that the minor child has made can help in building protective barriers which may allow the child to develop in a more secure environment and avoid problems in the future as well as when they are adults.

Methodology

For the purpose of this study, a qualitative research approach shall be adopted. A qualitative methodological approach not only offers the interviewer with narratives which can directly record personal experiences, but it also provides an opportunity for the researcher to understand and relate better to the everyday work life experiences of the participants.

Another characteristic which favours the qualitative approach over the quantitative approach for this particular research is the fact that the former allows the researcher to freely capture the participant’s working experience and be able to relate to such happenings in a receptive yet curious manner. Such an in-depth analysis is essential for this study, since the researcher aims to discover and unfold the factors related to juvenile delinquency; a phenomena which cannot be investigated through a quantitative methodological approach.

Data collection plays a very crucial role in every research carried out. Amongst the diverse tools which may be used, interviews tend to be the most applicable since they offer an in-depth insight into what cannot be plainly observed. Semi-structured interviews shall be adopted for the purpose of this study. These offer the flexibility of the unstructured style of interview which is then merged with centralised rigidness which constitute a structured interview.

Six semi-structured interviews shall be conducted with a; Social Worker, Legal practitioner, professional working in the probation and parole section, prefect of discipline representing the education sector and two Police officials. In this regard, the research participants must have work experience and are presently engaged in the youth sector.

Considering the nature of the study, a thematic analysis approach shall be used to analyse and probe the information elicited from the interviews carried out. While being the most common form of analysis amongst the various qualitative research methods, the thematic analysis approach is not bound to a particular theoretical framework. Therefore, by offering the researcher accessibility and flexibility when it comes to selecting patterns within the data collected from the established research questions, thematic analysis can successfully identify the factors and the results desired for this research.

Ethical Issues

Special precautions shall be taken in relation to ethical issues making sure that the wellbeing of all people involved is not impaired as a result of the research. Following the acquisition of ethical permission to conduct the study, the researcher shall attempt to recruit research participants through a voluntary and informed consent which they will eventually sign upon approval. Apart from stressing that participants can opt to renounce from the research at any phase, the information letter should also provide the assurance of anonymity and confidentiality.

Prior to the interview, the researcher will explain the nature and scope of the study to all participants via a recruitment letter. Participants will be reminded not to discuss any particular details of their cases.

Apart from having the option to quit from the study at any point throughout the interview, the participants may also choose to omit answering any questions which they might feel uncomfortable with. The research participants will also be given the possibility to indicate if they would prefer having the interview audio recorded or not. Participants may possibly prefer not having their voices recorded so as to ensure full anonymity. However, in the case that they will opt for the audio recording, the media devise shall be left visible making it possible for the participant to have full control and pause it whenever necessary.

Throughout this process, the safety of the researcher will also be safeguarded. A new mobile phone sim card shall be used for the sole purpose of this study. This contact number will be given to the research participants so as to be able to communicate with the researcher if the need arises. Interviews will be carried out in public places and during day time.

Reference List

1. Baysinger, H. R., & Cresswell. (2017). Factors contributing to juvenile delinquency. Retrieved from https://baysingerlaw.com/2018/03/factors-contributing-juvenile-delinquency/
2. Bridges, K. (1927). Factors Contributing to Juvenile Delinquency. Journal of the American Institute of Criminal Law and Criminology, 17(4), 531.
3. Cohen, L., Manion, L., & Morrison, K. (2013). Research methods in education. Routledge.
4. Formosa Pace, J. (2015). Parent-child crime is common in Malta. Retrieved January 30, 2017,
5. from http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20150825/local/parent-child-crime- is-common-in-malta.581847
6. Hammond, M., & Wellington, J. J. (2013). Research methods: The key concepts. Routledge.
7. Helfer, R. E., & Kempe, C. H. (Eds.). (1976). Child abuse and neglect: The family and the community. Cambridge, MA: Ballinger Publishing Company.
8. Meldrum, R., Connolly, G., Flexon, J., & Guerette, R. (2016). Parental Low Self-Control, Family Environments, and Juvenile Delinquency. International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, 60(14), 1623-1644.
9. Rose, S., Ambreen, S., & Fayyaz, W. (2017). Contributing Factors of Juvenile Delinquency among Youth of Balochistan. Pakistan Journal of Criminology, 9(3), 156.
10. Rubin, A., & Babbie, E. R. (2012). Essential Research Methods. Cengage Learning.
11. Trio Saputra. (2017). The relationship between family functioning and juvenile delinquency at SMKN 4 Pekanbaru. Jurnal Psikologi Pendidikan Dan Konseling, 3(1), 21-26.
12. Weerman, F., & Hoeve, M. (2012). Peers and delinquency among girls and boys: Are sex differences in delinquency explained by peer factors? European Journal of Criminology,9(3), 228-244.
13. Zammit Marmara, D. (2008). Juvenile delinquency. Retrieved from https://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20080422/opinion/juveniledelinquency.205126

The Causes And Solutions Linked To Juvenile Delinquency

Abstract

In this generation, temptation among youth is higher than ever. It is easy for kids to fall into this trap due to easy access around them. The number of youth involved in juvenile crime in the past years has increased immensely. The purpose of this research paper is to figure out the main causes of why the number has skyrocketed so high. I will search for the most reliable sources, and use human sources as well. Juvenile delinquency is something that most people only see the surface of. They see kids that make bad choices. Most people do not take the time to fully understand the reason behind why they may be doing what they are doing. My role in writing this is to figure out these reasons, and share them with those who do not understand. My goal in this paper is to help people to become educated before they judge these kids. I believe there are major causes that influence youth to commit crimes, and they should be taken into consideration.

Growing Years

Kids are known to be rebellious and adventurous, especially between the ages of ten and eighteen. This is basically the commonly known “teenage years” when kids want to find their purpose in the world and are more driven to fight against conforming to what society tells them to do. These are the most influential years in a human’s life. This is when kids really begin to learn about everything that comes with “growing up.” This is when the outside influences have the biggest effect on a child. These influences include celebrities they see through television and social media, teachers and other people in authority such as bosses or managers at a job, and mostly the people around them such as friends and family, especially their parents. These people all influence that kid’s behavior. Most of the time, the influence will benefit the kid. For example, parents and teachers helping a child figure out the things they are good at and enjoy doing to help them start looking at career paths and colleges to apply for. Or maybe it is coaches and teammates driving the kid to be the best athlete he can be. These are all the factors that would normally lead to a successful human being in the future. However, things do not always go as planned, and sometimes the influences surrounding a child are not so good. When a child is exposed to bad actions such as negative behavior, abuse, peer pressure, negligence, or a broken home, they are automatically going to have a harder time becoming a successful functioning citizen. They lose the factor of positive reinforcement and support, which is pretty crucial to becoming a successful human. Even though many kids are able to overcome the negative influences and get themselves on the right path from the help of another source, most of them are not able to do so. These are the at-risk youth that are more than likely on the road leading to future criminal activity. Outside influences have the strongest effect on a child, and family is the most affective factor.

First of Juvenile Delinquency

Juvenile delinquency made its appearance most noticeably during the progressive area, in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. This was mainly caused by the changes in social conditions, immigration, and urbanization (…). Kids spent time wandering in the streets, which usually resulted in criminal activity. At first, kids were locked up with grown adults when they were being held. This had to change due to the negative actions and influences, however kids that committed certain crimes are sometimes put in adult courts. The new houses of refuge and reformatories were made specifically for at-risk youth. These places would work with the kids to teach them the physical and social skills that they lacked due to their previous environment.

Family Issues

When you look at the leading causes of juvenile delinquency, a reoccuring factor that you see is problems associated with family. Whether it’s violence at home, a single-parent home, abuse within the family, or even the parental guidance that is being distributed. One of the largest contributing factors is violence in the home and it is shown that when a child is subjected to violence, they tend to turn violent also. Kids exposed to violent actions are far more likely to act their fears and frustrations out, which allows them to get in trouble easier. Also, a single parent home can have an affect on the child. Without both figures in your life, it opens up more difficulties and the child could look at it as being ‘’motherless’’or ‘’fatherless’’. Alongside that, parental influence is the most important factor in deterring delinquency. If a parent interacts with the child and shows them what is acceptable behavior then they are less likely to act in a delinquent act. It is very important for the child to have a secure and strong bond or connection with their parents. Children need an adult to influence them and show them the difference between what is right and what is wrong.

Socioeconomic Factors

Socioeconomic factors play a huge role in contributing to juvenile delinquency and tie in with several others. Juvenile delinquency is more common in poorer neighborhoods and the kids in these areas feel they must commit crimes and do things as they see around them. If they are surrounded by theft, gangs, violence, and more they are more likely to fall into that as their lives go on. This also ties in with poor educational standards. The type of school that a child attends could also contribute to their delinquency. Schools in poorer locations are usually underfunded and tend to lack in discipline and order which causes unsteady learning environments. Children in these situations often act more defensively because of the environment surrounding them. Another huge factor that is really important is the parental involvement in their school work and activities. Parents that are engaged with their kids education and care about their kids work, that child is more prone to perform well in the classroom. Another thing tied directly into this is poor school attendance. School is not just for learning, it develops habits and routines as well. Children who are not encouraged by this are losing good habits and creates a bad base for the future.

Lack of Finances

Another leading cause of juvenile delinquency is lack of finances. Children growing up in poverty and lower income areas tend to conform to their society and find easier ways to make money. This usually ends up in the children trying to steal for things they don’t have.

Ways of Prevention

In conclusion, juvenile delinquency can be caused from several different factors throughout a kid’s life. However, there are some ways to prevent it. While poor education is a causing factor of juvenile delinquency, providing different educational programs for the students to have awareness of what their actions could do is a great improvement. Another way alongside better education programs is recreation. Recreation programs allow the kids to connect with the youth around them in their community. Community involvement is also very important in keeping a kid out of trouble. These few simple changes could allow friendships to be built and brighter futures for kids on the wrong path.

The Labeling Theory On Juveniles And Juvenile Delinquency

Introduction to Labeling Theory and Its Sociological Significance

The labeling theory says that people become classified and alter their behaviors in courses that echo how others seem to label them. The theory is the most commonly categorized with sociology for crime along with deviance. Labeling and considering someone as criminally deviant can promote and support deviant behavior. For example, labeling a person as a criminal causes other poeple to consider them with more negativity than positivity and the feedback to being treated very negatively in turn can create for that individual to operate more negatively from there on out (Crossman 1).

Historical Development of Labeling Theory in Sociology

The labeling theory is essential to the idea of the social construction of reality. The social construction of reality is the center of sociology and is associated to the perspective of symbolic interactionist. The symbolic interactionism is a theory that looks at society as a product of people and their social interactions. The topic of sociology and deviance blossomed within American sociology during the 1960s, in appreciation to the large part of sociologists like Howard Becker. However, sociology of deviance core ideas were established by the founding French sociologist Emile Durkheim. The focal point of American sociologist George Herbert Mead’s theory on the social construction of the individual is a process that involves social interactions with others, which is influential in its own development. Others affected in the development of the labeling theory and the conduct of research related to it include other sociologists like Frank Tannenbaum, Edwin Lemert, Albert Memmi, Erving Goffman, and David Matza (Crossman 2).

In the theories most superficial form, the labeling theory purely suggests that human beings most likely will feel obligated to act out roles dictated by their new status as criminals by their peers. Associate delinquency and other controls can possibly account for delinquent behavior, although it is possible that a developed self- concept independently affects recidivism (Bernburg, Krohn, and Rivera 67). Certainly, the connection between self-identification as deviant and actual deviant behavior cannot be ignored. Although, it is not impossible that the relationship between identity and behavior is interwoven in and by social influences (Mouttapa 5).

Labeling Theory’s Mechanisms: Internalization and External Reactions

A study from four different youth detention camps in Southern California examines the labeling theory and the behaviors and the attitudes of 91 incarcerated youths. These incarcerated youths were linked to serious alcohol abuse along with a shared social identity with the “gang member” appearance. The participants were asked in a survey that was self reported about their behaviors before they were brought into detention, also their experiences prior to and during detention with feelings of acrimony. The youth participants were asked also to pick from a list of 16 diverse social identities that they personally felt best represented their peer group. The social identity list was constructed by the researchers and detention camp staff. The list included labels or identities such as, “skaters”, “stoners”, “jocks”, “taggers”, “heavy metalers”, “loners”, and “actors”. What the outcome of this social identity list was that the study found that the majority of participants who identified themselves as “gang members” were more than 50% to have consumed alcohol heavily in the 30 days prior to their incarceration, as opposed to 30% among those who did not self-identify as gang members (Mouttapa 6). These results were gladly recored due to their significance statistically speaking, for controlling the self-reported levels of antagonism throughout the incarcerated youths. Since juveniles have no yet fully developed internally and externally, the relationships with the individual’s personal identity, peer group, and behavior is extremely detrimental to that individuals life-course. One concept that this study on labeling with juveniles did not account for was the possibility that the juveniles self-concept may be the result of their incarceration, although the study did take multiple steps towards clarifying the relationships among an individual’s identity, peer group and behavior (Liberman 5).

Case Studies and Empirical Evidence Supporting Labeling Theory

Generally predicting the labeling theories “official” response to delinquency nurtures future delinquency (Lemert 1951). Thus indicating two different mechanisms by which a “label” can lead to increased deviancy through the labeling theory (Paternoster and Iovanni 937). In one prime mechanism the labeling theory has to offer is that a delinquent label alters a youth’s self- conception or personal identity toward a more deviant self-concept, which is then self-fulfilling (Matsueda 1992). Edwin Lemert’s version of labeling theory is symbolic of this labeling process, because of Lemert’s depiction of the progression from primary deviance to secondary deviance. Individuals internalize the deviant status due to the societal reaction to the deviants’ behavior, and deviants’ come to organize their lives around this particular status. Thus creating a strong bond between labeled deviants with other deviant peers (Wiley Slocum, and Esbensen 2013), withdraw from everyday activities (Bernburg 2009), and ultimately engage in criminal offenses at an exceedingly higher rate than similar individuals who have not been labeled “deviant.” With this information regarding higher rates of labeled offenders, stigmatized youth would then also have more frequent interaction with the criminal justice system than non- deviants (Liberman 6).

The second mechanism in the labeling theory focuses more on external processes such as social and societal responses to the label. The responses include increased surveillance as well as reduced social experiences and cooperation (Klein 1986; Paternoster and Iovanni, 1989). These mechanisms of the labeling theory are not necessarily internal to the labeled individual, but rather to the external social and societal responses. In reference to Lemert’s terms of primary versus secondary deviance, people tend to conceptualize the labeling event, for example, an arrest as a “primary sanction” and subsequent punitive societal responses resulting from the label as “secondary sanctioning.” This sociological terminology is intended to focus the idea that there are possibly two parallel processes operating in reaction to a deviant label, one internal and the other one external (Liberman 7).

Multiple recent studies have shown sufficient evidence of such secondary sanctioning processes. In particular, Kirk and Sampson have suggested that an arrest record officially marks a juvenile as a “criminal” and changes the way institutions, such as schools, treat the offender, or in an educational institute, a student. These students with criminal records are all too often pushed out of high school through exclusionary policies, and segregated into specialized programs focussed on problem youth. The result of the primary sanction, for instance arrest, and the secondary sanction, school exclusionary policies and practices, has an increased likelihood of high school dropout and diminished prospects who were looking at attending a college in their future (Sweeten 462). Thus leading to a likelier future criminal forthcoming. Along with the deviant label, the stigma of a criminal record drastically influences how former offenders are treated too. For instance, potential employers and the denial of employment represents a form of secondary sanctioning (Pager 937).

Implications of Labeling Theory in Juvenile Delinquency

Moreover, if labeling effects operate though differential social or societal responses to those labeled as deviant, then a labeled individual may have more frequent interactions with the criminal justice system even if his or her criminal offending does not increase following an arrest (relative to otherwise similar “non-deviants” who avoided an arrest record). As Petrosino and colleagues put it, “The same actions that resulted in police turning a blind eye to misconduct may now result in an arrest.” Such secondary sanctioning processes fit broadly under the realm of labeling theory, but offer slightly different predictions than classic versions of labeling which stress identity internalization, or even Sampson and Laub’s version which stresses a decline in social controls. The essential difference is that the stigmatized deviant may not engage in crime at a higher rate following arrest relative to an otherwise similar individual who managed to avoid arrest, but the stigmatized deviant would still be rearrested and sanctioned more often because of the intensified gaze, or declining tolerance, of the criminal justice system (Liberman 2014).

Admitting to sociologists like Emile Durkheim and George Herbert Mead, deviance is found functional to society because deviance keeps the stability and the profound boundaries in society. The labeling theory also expands into including the functions of deviance, explains how society reacts to the labels and stigma of the offender, and how separate the labeling keeps people from the rest of society. The results of the labeling theory and the stigmatization is a self- fulfilling revelation to which the offender views themselves in the same ways society does.

Conclusion: The Role of Labeling in Shaping Juvenile Identity and Behavior

Overall, the labeling theory has proven to be accurate in the sense that the effects of labeling an individual, more so a juvenile whose still developing self-concept, has drastically negative outcomes for these individuals. Although juveniles may be more prone to the negative results of the labeling theory due to their importance in their peer groups, their establishment with their selves, and the image they create for themselves early on in life. All in all, the labeling theory suggests that labels should not be used at all, for labels tell people how they are perceived by society which is only detrimental to the offender and therefore to society.

References

1. Bernburg, Jon Gunnar, Marvin D. Krohn and Craig J. Rivera. 2006. “Official Labeling, Criminal Embeddedness and Subsequent Delinquency: A Longitudinal Test of Labeling Theory.” Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency 43(1): 67-88.
2. Bernburg, Jon Gunnar, and Marvin D. Krohn. 2003. Labeling, life chances, and adult crime: The direct and indirect effects of official intervention in adolescence on crime in early adulthood. Criminology 41:1287–318.
3. Crossman, Ashley. “How Labeling Theory Can Help Us Understand Bias and Criminal Behavior.” Thoughtco., Dotdash, 30 Dec. 2018, www.thoughtco.com/labeling- theory-3026627.
4. Kirk, David S., and Robert J. Sampson. 2013. Juvenile arrest and collateral educational damage in the transition to adulthood. Sociology of Education 86:36–62.
5. Laub, John H., and Robert J. Sampson. 2003. Shared Beginnings, Divergent Lives: Delinquent Boys to Age 70. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
6. Lemert, Edwin M. 1951. Social Pathology: A Systematic Approach to the Theory of Sociopathic Behavior. New York: McGraw-Hill.
7. Liberman, Akiva M. “Labeling Effects of First Juvenile Arrests.” Urban , Feb. 2014, www.urban.org/sites/default/files/publication/33701/413274-Labeling-Effects-of-First- Juvenile-Arrests-Secondary-Deviance-and-Secondary-Sanctioning.PDF.
8. Mouttapa, Michele, Donnie W. Watson, William Jason McCuller, Steve Sussman, Jie W. Weiss, Chris Reiber, Deanna Lewis and Winnie Tsai. 2010. “I’m Mad and I’m Bad: Links Between Self-Identification as a Gangster, Symptoms of Anger, and Alcohol Use Among Minority Juvenile Offenders.” Youth Violence and Juvenile Justice 8(1): 71-82.
9. Pager, Devah. 2003. The mark of a criminal record. American Journal of Sociology 108:937–75.
10. Paternoster, Raymond, and Leeann Iovanni. 1989. The labeling perspective and delinquency: An elaboration of the theory and assessment of the evidence. Justice Quarterly 6:359–94.
11. Schwartz, Richard, and Jerome Skolnick. 1962. Two studies of legal stigma. Social Problems 10:133–42.
12. Sweeten, Gary. 2006. Who will graduate? Disruption of high school education by arrest and court involvement. Justice Quarterly 23:462–80.
13. Wiley, Stephanie A., Lee Ann Slocum, and Finn-Aage Esbensen. 2013. The unintended consequences of being stopped and arrested: An exploration of the labeling mechanisms through which police contact leads to subsequent delinquency. Criminology 51:927–66.

An Analysis Of A Juvenile’s Violence And Delinquency

ABSTRACT

The Retribution given to an adult is not as the same for a child though the crime committed by them are same. Juvenile delinquency is an act or omission by a child or young fantasy, which is punishable by law. The Delhi gang rape in a bus where the juvenile offender had been released after 3 years of term at the probation home, the adult offenders still has a pending review plea for their hanging. The Juvenile Justice act 2015 provides that the juvenile between the age of 16-18 can be tried as an adult for any heinous offences.

In this research paper, we would like to discuss the cases where a juvenile offender has not been given appurtenant punishment and specifically juvenile involved in the Delhi gang rape. We would also like to give suggestions about the juvenile justice act.

INTRODUCTION

A life of a girl is full of happiness and challenges. From the time she goes out till she reaches home society imposes a lot of challenges on her path. This becomes the most traumatic challenge for every girl. One such shocking incident which frightened the feminine class in the society was a heinous gang rape committed in New Delhi. Nirbhaya had a tough night with the monsters who had molested her. This case brought fear in every Indian parent to take care of their children and to pluck out them from the eyes of the evil. Due to the occurrence of rape which is happening every 6 minutes in India many parents hesitated to educate their girl children in fear of beasts in human form. The Delhi rape case which flabbergasted the whole society made the parliament to take immediate action and to amend the Juvenile Justice Act by treating the juveniles from age group of 16 to 18 years as adults in case of such heinous crimes.

THE AMENDMENT OF JUVENILE JUSTICE ACT, 2015

The Nirbhaya case was considered to be one of the horrifying rape case in the history of India. Out of the four rapists one was a juvenile who had brutally committed the rape but was unfortunately given lesser punishment than the other 3 adults who were given capital punishment. Many NGO’s and other women organisations raised their voices against the juvenile rapist, after which the parliament of India enacted Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Child) Act, 2015[endnoteRef:1] which stated that if any juvenile offender from the age group of 16-18 will be punished and treated as adults in heinous crimes. But even though the parliament has taken these measures the injustice given to Nirbhaya on the case of juvenile accused portray the lacuna in the law of India where a law is blindly followed forgetting its very own purpose to give justice. [1: www.advocatekhoj.com]

JUVENILE OFFENDERS IN OTHER COUNTRIES

• In the United states of America, nearly 20 states had tried and sentenced juveniles as adults to imprisonment for heinous offences. A 13-year-old boy in Florida who was accused of beating his half-brother to death while sexually abusing another five – year – old half – brother was charged as an adult. The United States of America is one of the two countries – the other being South Sudan -which is not a signatory to the UN Convention on Rights of the Child.
• In France, a separate court called Juvenile Assize court[endnoteRef:2] tries serious offences committed by minors from age group of 16 – 18 years for which a law was also enacted to provide criminal response for juvenile delinquency. [2: https//:www.en.wikipedia.org]
• The United Kingdom is a signatory; it has kept heinous crimes like rape and murder out of the ambit of its Youth Justice System.
• Belgium is the first country to have a best Juvenile Justice Act. It considers the juvenile rapists to be treated as an adult and to get the maximum punishment.

MORAL ASPECTS OF RAPE

Rape is a heinous offence but it is considered to be an understudied offence. Rape is not an offence which comes out of anger or misconduct. This is a spontaneous act made by a person or group of people without any personal vengeance or any kind of preparation made by them or without the consent of the victim. Rape has become a global threat and it shows the demonic side of many. If a minor commits theft it could be because of hunger and poverty. But if a minor tends to commit rape or rapes a woman, that itself proves that the minor is one no more a child as he knows what is wrong and what is not. Rape cannot be done by a child mind. In Nirbhaya’s case, it was clearly evident that the minor was very beastful in nature and he was the main accused of the case who molested her badly and struck a rod into her intestines. But the media covered it as there is no evidence to prove the violence caused by him.

As a Juvenile, the mind set to torture and abuse a woman is in itself a grave crime. The juvenile convict, who was the most brutal among the rest for causing the victim’s death walked away with three years confinement in a juvenile home. By giving him only 3 years imprisonment proved to show a grave miscarriage of justice. The Juvenile Justice Act has been enacted to protect minors not rapists to give another chance to live their life whereas the victim has been already dead. For serious offences like rape, murder and kidnap the retribution should be as equal as an adult because the offence itself is horrendous. Delhi based clinical psychologist Dr. Rajat Mitra, who works in the juvenile care homes stated that the 16-year-old boy in the Nirbhaya case is the one who had lured the victim in the bus and call her “Didi” in his sweet singing voice. Whether this act can be done by a child mind? This is the question the judiciary have to look into. The Lok Sabha stated that the crimes of the juveniles have been increased 50.6 percent in the year 2005 – 2014[endnoteRef:3]. Nearly 50,000 juveniles has been arrested. [3: www.slideshare.com]

CONCLUSION

Children are celebrated as an angel who has descended from Heaven in a child form. If the angel turns into a devil he must be thrown into the hell of fire. Rape is not an offence which happens due to poverty or unemployment. Cruel mind constitutes the offence. The amendment which is been brought by the parliament in the year 2015 to treat them as adults for the heinous crimes marks as a stepping stone towards each and every minor criminal from age 16. The Nirbhaya’s minor convict is the major source for the amendment. So, the juvenile convict needs to be treated as like the other four convicts.