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Prediction About Whether the Transition to College Will, on Average, Increase Offending,

Decrease Offending or Have No Effect

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Prediction About Whether the Transition to College Will on Average Increase Offending,

Decrease Offending or Have No Effect.

Life is always known to take several transitions that always leave a mark, either

recognized as positive or negative. Similarly, learners are always expected to make several

transitions in their livelihood as they have to move from one level of learning to another. Each

transition taken is hoped to elevate the learner in regard to acquiring more knowledge, wisdom,

and a general understanding of not only the course they are undertaking but also the general

comprehension of life. However, this does not always stand out to be the case. Some of the

transitions taken prove to be a risk-taking adventure. This is because as students keep advancing

in acquiring more educational levels, they are exposed to worldly life, which is full of evil deeds,

such as taking drugs, cheating, rooting, and joining bad companies (Benson, 2013). In most

instances, some of the transition leaves students with much freedom for them to make their own

choices. In conjunction, this paper intends to form a prediction of how students' transition into

college would affect them. The paper would research using credible resources to assess whether

during the transition to college students would increase, decrease or have no effect on tendencies

to form or act in violent acts.

Transition can be defined as the internal process in the mind that takes place when

learners experience changes and pass from the known to the unknown, responding to cognitive,

social, and cultural challenges. Transitioning from high school to college is considered one of the

most crucial developmental milestones that possess the potential for a student's behavioral

change and personal growth. College presents a time of significant transition. First-year college

students are exposed to transformational changes as they try to negotiate the handles of transition

in order to fit into the new environments of the university. This exposure to transition seems to
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be compulsory for the learner for the fact that they are forced to live away from home for the

first time and have limited access to psychological and mental support from family and friends.

As students undergo the transition into college life away from their family and friends,

they face increased independence and freedom, which causes them to encounter great stress

sourced from a variety of causes, such as developing a new support system, adjusting to a new

environment, and increasing academic demands. At the same time, the new college life provides

students with the opportunity to experiment with smoking, drinking, and other kinds of drugs,

which may compound issues with mood and increase the risk of suicide or participating in

violent activities (Giordano et al., 2011). During the transition, students experience similar

feelings as to those in other life events such as losing a loved one, moving from one country to

another, or changing jobs. Furthermore, the school transition is always associated with a host of

changes, including increased academic demands and expectations, shifts in peer group

hierarchies and composition, bigger schools, larger classes, and less adult influence and

supervision.

However, these expectations sometimes might not turn out to be the case. The various elements

of the transition to college can highly predict if the student would increase, reduce or have no

effect towards violence. Considering that students joining colleges are in their early teenage

years, I would predict that the transition to college would increase offenses of being involved in

violent activities. As supported by DeLisi (2015), claims that the involvement of students in

violence and crime activities emerges in adolescence, increases sharply to a peak in early

adulthood or late adolescence, and then plummets towards zero for the rest of their life course.

This implies that when students are leaving their high school lifestyle to join colleges, it is the

time when they are most active towards being involved in violent activities.
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As already pointed out, the transition into college life offers a different experience to

students. When joining the college, students’ prior history of mental health is mostly healthy and

ready to integrate. However, the new environments can present unfavorable conditions that can

frustrate their expectations. This may cause students to feel depressed, angered, and experience

stress. As argued by Farrington (1986), violence is understood to be often driven by negative

emotions, such as fear, anger, stress, and panic. Students who transition to college in their first

phase or first year that has stressful experiences tend to become violent. While on campus,

angered and frustrated students can take up various types of violence. For instance, they can

become physically violent, which includes anyone using weapons, physical aggression, and

criminal acts like arson and theft. They can become psychologically violent, which includes

verbal and emotional abuse. Other forms of violence that students can engage in include sexual

violence, bullying, and cyberbullying.

Academic and social integration is another element of the transition to college which I

believe can trigger increased violence in colleges. The transition to college requires a coherent

effort across the institution, including participating, programming, and planning from student

affairs, academic affairs, and even administration and facilities. Although this may look different

across different colleges, the transitioning students are expected to have engagement from a hose

of units on campus, including financial aid, other students, faculty, deans, academic support

services, career services, and student life, among others. However, if the student does not

encounter adequate help during this process, they may feel frustrated and, in the process, develop

psychological violence. They may start using inappropriate language to others or even develop

verbal abuse.
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Another element that can cause an increase in violence among students in the university

is orchestrated guidance. This refers to the guidance and support environment that students

require in order to be successful along the path from inquiry to graduation. The college

environment is supposed to be in a way that supports students in making personal connections

with college representatives. However, there are times when the individuals who provide the

guidance may change throughout the process. In addition, this kind of guidance aids admitted

students and applicants with clarity on whom to contact when there are questions or confusion. It

also helps in founding essential connections in colleges that cement a transition. However, if the

college environment lacks this guiding tool, students in transition may experience stressors

situations that can cause a predisposition to experience mental health issues. Consequently,

students may become more violent in college.

When students are on the transition to joining college, they are expected to make

purposeful choices. This entails forming the right program for academic progress, surrounding

and associating with good friends, limiting partying, and focusing on studying and conforming to

proper discipline. Unfortunately, most students transitioning to college fail to meet this

expectation. This occurs due to the fact that getting to college means students have more

freedom, new friends, and a lot of leisure time to spend. In the process, students may prefer to

indulge themselves in activities that involve more pleasure than those that concentrate on their

studies. In the process, students can find themselves joining criminal gangs, activist programs, or

even drug peddling (Craig & Connell, 2015). Once students associate themselves with such a

group, they may develop violent motives towards others as a result of influence caused by drugs

or from the group.

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Overall, I predict that students' transition into college will increase offending and

involvement in violent acts. This is attributed to various factors, such as the age of students in

transition and the new environment that grants student freedom and leisure time. In addition,

these factors align with the transition to college, which reveals that first-year students tend to be

more exposed to the negativity of college life than the positive part. If parents and the college

staff do not sufficiently support students' livelihood in college, it can result in massive

involvement in violent acts. Therefore, parents need to play the role of guiding and protecting

their students despite their adulthood. They need to offer guidance and advice where needed

regularly. On the other hand, the faculty need to stipulate better procedures that guide and show

students how they should carry out tasks, as well as closely relate with them in order to

understand the struggles or problems that they encounter.

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References

Benson, M. L. (2013). Crime and the lifecourse: An introduction. Routledge.

Craig, J. M., & Connell, N. M. (2015). The All-volunteer Force and crime: The effects of

military participation on offending behavior. Armed Forces & Society, 41(2), 329-351.

DeLisi, M. (2015). 4 age–crime curve and criminal career patterns. The development of criminal

and antisocial behavior: Theory, research and practical applications, 51-63.

Farrington, D. P. (1986). Age and crime. Crime and justice, 7, 189-250.

Giordano, P. C., Seffrin, P. M., Manning, W. D., & Longmore, M. A. (2011). Parenthood and

crime: The role of wantedness, relationships with partners, and ses. Journal of criminal

justice, 39(5), 405-416.