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Juvenile Delinquency

Most legal systems have specific procedures for dealing with juveniles, such as juvenile

detention centers and courts, to address the issue of juvenile delinquency, also known as juvenile

offending or adolescent crime. The term "juvenile delinquent" refers to a person who, often

under 18, does an act that would be considered a crime if committed by an adult. People under

18 can be charged and tried as adults depending on the nature and seriousness of the alleged

crime. (Grisso, T. (2008) In addition, we can think of a youngster who engages in juvenile

delinquency as a responsible minor, a culpable adolescent. Juvenile delinquency is primarily

described as antisocial behavior by a child beyond parental control and consequently liable to

legal prosecution—taking part in illegal activities while under the age of majority is also

included.

A tangled web of causes contributes to the rise in criminal activity. It is a combination of

individual and environmental factors that interact to produce a specific pattern of behavior.

According to the findings, kids whose parents go overseas often get lost or "go astray" because

they are exposed to incorrect influences. Children without a stable home environment are

particularly vulnerable. Juvenile delinquency causes can also be traced back to childhood trauma,

aggression, role modeling after criminal authority, etc.

Problems facing juvenile delinquency

Family concerns play a crucial role. The parents and the family significantly impact a

child or adolescent's growth and development. Families are a child's first and most influential
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environment, so problems within the family unit can be complex. Family life and delinquency

can both be negatively affected by instability. Children raised by caring, consistent people are

less likely to engage in criminal behavior than adolescents or adults. Communities significantly

impact the lives of children raised by parents who ignore or reject them.

Such characteristics can be exacerbated by the imitation of a single criminal act. Some of

the most formative years of a person's social life occur during childhood and adolescence. The

formative years are crucial for developing a person's core beliefs, behavioral norms, and driving

forces. One's parents and other family members are particularly influential at this time.

Moreover, during this time of transition from childhood to adulthood, the influence of parents is

typically supplanted by peers and friends as individuals work to define and develop their unique

identities. (Terrie, E. M. (2018). Thus, one possible cause of youthful delinquency is to follow in

the footsteps of older, more established criminals.

As important as environmental factors are, psychological difficulties also play a role in

supporting the perpetuation of juvenile delinquency. Different psychological problems in kids

and teenagers can stem from various causes, including low socio-economic position, inattentive

parenting, inferiority complexes, and neglect—disorders like anxiety, sadness, complexes, and

excessive anger. The youngster may be further pushed over the edge into criminal behavior.

The development and consequences of youth crime

The United States established the legal term juvenile delinquent in the late 1800s to

characterize young offenders. Juveniles typically engage in less severe transgressions, including
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truancy, curfew breaking, and drinking at an illegal age. Status violations are rarely seen as

delinquent acts by young people.

The effects of juvenile delinquency are far-reaching, affecting not only the victims of the

delinquents but also the delinquents themselves, their families, and the larger community. Young

offenders will suffer significantly from the consequences of their criminal behavior, but the

offender will not be able to foresee those consequences on their own. (National Research

Council. (2001).

When adolescents commit crimes like this, they lose their independence because they are

sentenced to probation or even jail time. Since they won't be able to participate in school-related

events during probation or incarceration, this also has repercussions for their education.

When a child is detained in a residential facility, they may be influenced by older, more

hardened criminals. These factors increase the likelihood that the teen may commit further

offenses in the future. The minor's delinquency may limit and shape their future professional

options. Having a juvenile delinquent in the family can be traumatic for other family members,

leading to increased anxiety and apprehension. The troubled teen's family must meet the

demands of the situation and pay the associated legal bills. The offender's loved ones also bear

moral responsibility for the victim. The family must attend counseling sessions for the

delinquent, which is both expensive and inconvenient.

Sexual behavior, substance abuse, gang membership, etc., all contribute to adolescent

delinquency. These factors contribute to a dangerous neighborhood and have prompted massive

government spending on security measures in schools and law enforcement. Juvenile

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delinquency has far-reaching consequences for the community, families, people, and all

members of society. It's not just the government and police who are struggling to deal with this

issue; neither do schools, churches, or other social groups.

Solutions to adolescent delinquency in a formal setting

There have been a variety of approaches to addressing this issue. The following are a few

more formal approaches that have been implemented to address this issue. Families and kids

have benefited from education model programs because of the knowledge they have provided.

Some programs are designed to educate parents on how to raise healthy children; others strive to

enlighten young people about the dangers of drugs, gangs, sexual activity, and weapons; yet

others seek to convey to young people the value they hold to society and the world. All of these

initiatives teach young people that their choices have repercussions. This is more crucial than

ever when young people are constantly exposed to sexual and violent media. The ultimate goal

of every educational initiative is to give young people a reason to dream and access new

possibilities.

The school has implemented a program to combat bullying. Middle and primary schools

implement the Bullying Prevention Program. Teachers and administrators can find out who is

responsible for bullying, who is being bullied, and where bullying occurs on campus using an

anonymous student survey. Teachers and administrators can take action against bullying if they

have a better understanding of the dynamics of the problem at their school. Both bullies and their

victims participate in individual therapy sessions. The initiative aims to make schools more

welcoming places for students at a reasonable cost. In business, alternative means of making

money within the law are being developed through professional training programs. Kids'
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involvement in criminal activities can be reduced by providing them with more economical

options, professional training and education, new workplaces, and aid in creating enterprises.

An additional method used to address the issue is functional family therapy. Probationers

and their families can benefit from the Functional Family Therapy program. A family therapist

consults with the whole household and encourages each member to consider how they might be

the catalyst for needed improvements. (Minuchin & Simon, G. M. (2006) This program has three

distinct stages. The therapist's first goal is to get the family to trust that they can change their

dysfunctional ways of communicating and interacting with one another and to help them feel

hopeful about the therapy process. In the second stage, family members are shown how to

modify their habits and reactions to certain daily occurrences. The third stage involves applying

newly acquired relational abilities outside the family (school, or the workplace, for instance).

FFT is an inexpensive method for decreasing recidivism and juvenile delinquency. The expense

of providing 12 FFT sessions is roughly equivalent to one month of child detention. The program

also impacts the youth's siblings, who are less likely to commit crimes due to the assistance their

family has received while their brother or sister is on parole.

Reaction in the legislature

All young people's rights and safety are essential for governments to pass and implement

specific laws and protocols. Indirectly, governments have helped young people in their efforts to

reform and contribute to society.

It is essential to pass and implement laws that protect children and young people from

being victimized, abused, exploited, or recruited into criminal activity. The government has
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taken the initiative to create and enforce policies and regulations that advance the rights and

safety of all children and teenagers. At no point should a kid or young person be subjected to

humiliating or cruel forms of discipline in a school or any other setting. The federal government

has long opposed the use of physical punishment on children, citing research that shows how

such practices contribute to juvenile crime, injuries, aggressiveness, and mental health issues.

There needs to be legislation and strict enforcement to prevent children and young people

from gaining easy access to firearms. Legislation should be enacted to ensure that any conduct

not considered an offense or not penalized if committed by an adult is not considered an offense

and is not punished if committed by a young person to prevent the further stigmatization,

victimization, and criminalization of young people.

The government has taken precautions to guarantee acts that would be regarded criminal

and punishable by an adult are not treated as such when performed by a minor. The formation of

an ombudsman's office or a comparable independent institution is typically considered to

safeguard young people's status, rights, and interests and guarantee that they are sent to the

appropriate resources. (Feld, B. C. (1988) The Riyadh Guidelines, the Beijing Rules, and the

Protection of Juveniles Deprived of Their Liberty would all fall within the purview of the

authorized ombudsman or other body. There would be periodic reports on the successes and

failures of the instrument's implementation published by the ombudsman or other agency

responsible for this task. It is also essential to build child advocacy services.

Female and male law enforcement officers and other relevant staff should receive training

on how to best respond to the unique needs of young people. They should be well-versed in and
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use diversionary programs and referral resources whenever available. By doing so, we have

reduced the likelihood of young people growing up to be biased.

For the sake of the safety of our youth, we must implement and aggressively enforce

legislation to criminalize drug trafficking and usage. The government responded to a rise in drug

trafficking by passing legislation to curb drug usage among young people.

Values in society and the State of the economy

A generational gap exists in terms of providing moral guidance to young people. Parental

and adult supervision and influence are the most effective means of preventing juvenile crime. A

child's likelihood of engaging in antisocial activity increases when they are exposed to positive

role models who can teach them the difference between right and wrong.

To a large extent, violent tendencies are taught. Witnessing violence or being physically

abused as a child are two common ways to get exposed to violence in the home at a young age.

According to the available research, exposure to various types of violence in childhood may

increase the risk of aggressive conduct in adolescents by as much as 40 percent. Research reveals

that children are at risk of eventual violence even if violence is not modeled in the home because

of a lack of good social relationships and restraints and because parents fail to teach (and

children fail to internalize) customary norms and values. And in some areas, you can go to

school and get involved in criminal activity simultaneously. High exposure to violence, violent

role models, and positive reinforcement for severe violent conduct are all made available by the

presence of gangs and illegal markets, notably drug distribution networks. School can be a

source of conflict, frustration, and aggressive outbursts, even though children's behavior patterns
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tend to follow them from home to school. (Elliott, D. S. (1994). Evidence suggests that youth

who do not complete high school, who deal drugs, and who have a history of aggressive behavior

are likelier to be gun owners. Two key impacts directly related to violent conduct have been

linked to growing up in low-income minority homes and disordered communities. To begin with,

fewer people get married because they can find stable jobs when they reach maturity. Second,

there is proof that adolescent growth is stunted when raised in low-income, chaotic

environments.

The influence of hostile peer groups is substantial. Connecting with people is a critical

factor in the development of criminal behavior. In the same way that some kids get to hang out

with their friends and others don't, social isolation can turn a child into a criminal. A child who

hangs around with bad influences is more likely to turn to crime, while a child who surrounds

himself with positive results is more likely to grow up to be a productive member of society. The

actions of one's friends have a significant impact on how that friend acts. By providing a setting

where juveniles are exposed to as few potential sources of inspiration for criminal action as

possible, we can increase the likelihood that they will adopt and respect the values and

assumptions of the broader society in which they are growing up.

Reasons relating to the economy

Violent crime and economic hardship go hand in hand. The vast majority of youth

offenders come from working-class backgrounds. Kids from low-income families often have to

help around the house, so they can't focus on their schoolwork. Multiple studies have found that

juvenile offenders with jobs are more likely to commit crimes than their unemployed

counterparts. (Ellis, Zarbatany, L. (2007). Children from low-income families sometimes turn to
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crime to fund unfulfilled wants. Being poor can make you feel worthless and unhappy, two

emotions that might fuel criminal behavior. Because of the complexity of the causes of juvenile

delinquency, which have been discussed at length above, it is evident that the principle of

specific causation cannot be applied here. Both criminologists and psychologists agree that many

different factors contribute to criminal behavior. A person's behavior might be understood as a

reflection of how they adapt to the world around them. Those that achieve this adjustment

through legitimate social channels are deemed healthy, whereas those who resort to abnormal

and antisocial media are labeled as criminals. (Fattah & Sacco, V. F. (2012) Therefore, various

social, familial, individual, psychological, and economic factors work together to turn a

youngster into a criminal. Thus, it is necessary to comprehend all the factors mentioned above

and eliminate them to rehabilitate the Juvenile delinquent as a good member of society. As a

result, juvenile delinquents are healed rather than punished in all progressive countries, which is

a source of great happiness.

Juvenile delinquency in its current form can be traced back to the unintended

consequences of societal and economic progress, including but not limited to economic

downturns, political unpredictability, and the erosion of the authority of once-mighty institutions

like the State, public education, and welfare systems, and the family. Research shows significant

gender differences in rates of delinquency and criminal activity. Crime rates among male and

young adult offenders are more than double those among young female offenders, and conviction

rates are six- or seven times higher, according to police records.

National crime statistics tend to be higher in countries where the population is

predominantly urban rather than rural. Possible causes include variations in social norms and
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cohesiveness. Crime rates are significantly lower in rural communities because of the prevalence

of family and community policing. More excellent crime rates are associated with the impersonal

nature of modern industrialized cities' legal and judicial systems. Because of cultural and

institutional differences, the treatment of a given offense might vary significantly from one

country to the next. Continued urbanization in developing countries is a factor in young people's

involvement in criminal activity. New types of social behavior emerge in the city because of its

fundamental characteristics, such as the weakening of primary social interactions and control, the

rise of reliance on the media at the expense of informal communication, and the prevalence of

anonymity. The higher population density, greater heterogeneity, and more significant number of

people observed in metropolitan areas generate these patterns. (Zimring, & Jennings, W. G.

(2007). Significant shifts are occurring in the family as a social institution; for instance, there

has been an uptick in single-parent households and non-marital partnerships. Without a father

figure, many boys from low-income families look to their peers involved in criminal activity for

guidance on behaving as a man. In many ways, these communities take the place of biological

families; they help shape how young men view themselves and their site in the world; and

facilitate the development of traits like aggression, masculinity, and nervousness.

The rates of youth violence and severe offenses have been rising. There has been an

uptick in drug-related criminality. Because of globalization and the increased mobility of huge

populations, crimes motivated by bigotry toward people of other backgrounds have increased.

(Cook &Laub, J. H. (1998). High rates of group crime stemming from the actions of ethnically

oriented delinquent gangs have been linked to the problems experienced by immigrants and their

descendants in several nations. Juvenile delinquency is sometimes connected to less overt causes,

such as the pressure to use violence as a means of creating gender identity, the standards of
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particular subcultures, or the teachings or traditions derived from religious radicalism. Some

young subcultures' perceptions of what constitutes acceptable social norms have been muddied

by media portrayals of aggressive and illegal behavior. Some youthful subcultures' perceptions

of what constitutes good social norms have been blurred by media portrayals of aggressive and

unlawful conduct. Adolescents and children from disadvantaged backgrounds are a pool of

potential recruits for illegal activities like human and drug trafficking and sexual exploitation.

Many young people worldwide have been forced into independence due to family breakdown,

poverty, or the loss of a parent to war or AIDS.

Implications for social work as a profession in general.

A multifaceted developmental strategy incorporating social work's preventive,

rehabilitative, and developmental tenets is required to combat juvenile delinquency effectively.

After that, several social theories are blended, and several social work interventions are

implemented. (Rosenbaum, D. P. (2002). And hence, this method might help social workers

choose the best preventative measures early on. Juvenile delinquency is caused by negative

habits that stem from upbringing and early experiences. Social professionals may be better able

to identify root causes with integrated social work. It will be possible for social workers to

restore social functioning by employing the appropriate methods to deal with this situation. To

fully understand juvenile delinquency, social workers must also consider the underlying theories.

To best assist their clients, they must experiment with various approaches and methods. In this

view, people and their environments are interdependent, so alterations to one will affect the

other.
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Reference

Cook, P. J., & Laub, J. H. (1998). The unprecedented epidemic in youth violence. Crime and

justice, 24, 27-64.

Elliott, D. S. (1994). Youth violence: An overview.

Ellis, W. E., & Zarbatany, L. (2007). Peer group status as a moderator of group influence on

children’s deviant, aggressive, and prosocial behavior. Child development, 78(4), 1240-

1254.

Fattah, E. A., & Sacco, V. F. (2012). Crime and Victimization of the Elderly. Springer Science & Business

Media.

Feld, B. C. (1988). The juvenile court meets the principle of offense: Punishment, treatment, and

the difference it makes. BUL Rev., 68, 821.

Grisso, T. (2008). Adolescent offenders with mental disorders. The future of children, 143-164.

Minuchin, S., Lee, W. Y., & Simon, G. M. (2006). Mastering family therapy: Journeys of growth

and transformation. John Wiley & Sons.

National Research Council. (2001). Educating children with autism. National Academies Press.

Rosenbaum, D. P. (2002). Evaluating multi-agency anti-crime partnerships: Theory, design, and

measurement issues. Crime prevention studies, 14, 171-225.

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Terrie, E. M. (2018). Adolescence-limited and life-course-persistent offending: A complementary pair of

developmental theories. In Developmental theories of crime and delinquency (pp. 11-54).

Routledge.

Zimring, F. E., Piquero, A. R., & Jennings, W. G. (2007). Sexual delinquency in Racine: Does

early sex offending predict later sex offending in youth and young adulthood?

Criminology & Public Policy, 6(3), 507-534.