Causes of and Conditions for the formation of Delinquent Trajectories
According to World Youth Report (2003), the intensity and severity of juvenile offenses are generally determined by the social, economic and cultural conditions prevailing in a country. There is evidence of a universal increase in juvenile crime taking place concurrently with economic decline, especially in the poor districts of large cities. In many cases street children later become young offenders, having already encountered violence in their immediate social environment as either witnesses or victims of violent acts. Based upon what goes on in a child’s daily life and their surroundings determines whether or not they will turn into youth offenders. For example of the
…show more content…
There are many circumstances where there are kids who are not less fortunate, but do it for the lack of attention and the others do it because it is a means of survival for them. Which brings to the reasons of economic, social, and cultural factors of why delinquents are delinquents. Also another reason would be urbanization and family.
Economic, Social, and Cultural Factors
According to World Youth Report (2003), juvenile delinquency is driven by the negative consequences of social and economic development, in particular economic crises, political instability, and the weakening of major institutions. Socio-economic instability is often linked to persistent unemployment and low incomes among the young, which can increase the likelihood of their involvement in criminal activity. An example of a child going through situations such as social and economic issues would be them experiencing broken family, divorce, sometime domestic violence, drug abuse in the home,
…show more content…
These films have become part of American culture and are at once a representation of and possible etiologic factor in causing delinquency. Due to the relative ease of access to videocassette recorders and cable television, there is increasing evidence that the age at which youth are exposed to the movies is becoming lower. Youth learn to behave aggressively by modeling violent actors in the media (Bandura, 1986).” This is explaining how youth are easily influenced by what they see on television and also in the media. Even though parents have an effect on their children acting out, sometimes the things the children watch on television can affect the child’s behavior. A perfect example would be when children are just playing and mimicking the ‘thugs’ on television by having a fake toy gun and pretending to shoot their siblings. Cases like this later lead into the child actually turning to a lifestyle filled with guns and violence because of what took place in their childhood. With dealing with the broader outlook of juvenile delinquency within movies, one can see the correlation of sex and race within juvenile
When families sit down to watch television, they expect to watch family type of shows. Family type shows meaning rated PG or PG13, sitcoms and movies that do not include weapons, killing, foul language, and non-socially accepted actions. When children killing, they start to believe that it is accepted. Do children think that killing and hurting others and themselves have little meaning to the real life, children can become traumatized. Most killers or violators of the law blame their behavior on the media, and the way that television portrays violators. Longitudinal studies tracking viewing habits and behavior patterns of a single individual found that 8-year-old boys, who viewed the most violent programs growing up, were the most likely to engage in aggressive and delinquent behavior by age 18 and serious criminal behavior by age 30 (Eron, 1). Most types of violence that occur today links to what people see on television, act out in video games or cyberspace games, or hear in music. Media adds to the violence that exists today and in the past few decades. It will continue in the future if it is not recognized as a possible threat to our society. When kids go to a movie, watch television, play video games or even surf the web, they become part of what they see and hear. Soaking violence in their heads long enough becomes a part of the way they think, acts, and live. The line between pretend and reality gets blurred.
There are many crimes committed by teenagers every year. Crimes that are committed by teens each year are mainly assault, bullying, gang violence, and physical fights. According to National Youth Violence Prevention Resource Center, about 1 and 9 murders are from kids that are under 18 (Center, 2001). In 1998, there were approximately 2,570 among youth aged 10-19. Every day there are at least 7 children murdered in the United States (Center, 2001). Statistics say that between 16%-32% female teenagers have committed a crime before the age of 17. Also 30%-40% male teenagers have committed a violent crime before they turned 17 (Center, 2001). Teenagers that commit crimes are the ones who were abused or bullied as a...
According to John Davidson's essay Menace to Society, "three-quarters of Americans surveyed [are] convinced that movies, television and music spur young people to violence." While public opinion is strong, the results of research are divided on the effects of media violence on the youth in this country. Davidson wrote that most experts agree that some correlation between media violence and actual violent acts exists, yet the results are contradictory and researchers quibble about how the effects are to be measured (271). Moreover, Davidson is not convinced that the media is the sole problem of violence, or even a primary problem. He points out that other factors, such as "poverty, the easy accessibility of guns, domestic abuse, [and] social instability" may have a greater impact on a child becoming violent than the influence of the media (277). Even though other forces may be stronger, media violence does have some adverse effects on the members of society. If senseless violence on television and in movies had no effect, it would not be such a hotly debated topic. What type of effects and whom they affect are the most argued aspects of the discussion.
Many in the juvenile justice field have tried to understand the cause of juvenile delinquency. There are many different theories describe the cause and effect of variables and how they react. However, through much research, we have concluded there is not just one single path or journey that determines the fate of the juvenile. There are many different risk factors that build in order to increase a youth's chance of becoming an offender. This is kind of like a domino effect. Risk factors are described as the characteristics that present themselves to determine if the individual or youth will become a delinquent. These factors may include; home life, income status, gender, and social. It can either be one or all that play a part in the way the
Juvenile delinquency is a problem in society. The number of crimes committed by juveniles has gone down in the past 20 years, but it is still considered a big issue. It is believed by some people that a criminal starts young and any kid who commits crimes will grow up to be a criminal, but crimes among juveniles usually don't last for long. Most juveniles who commit crimes or status offenses, things that are only illegal because they are under the age of 18, are only Adolescent-Limited Offenders that grow out of it and become well-rounded adults. The ones who are in real trouble are the ones that keep on committing crimes even when they become adults or what is called Life-Course Persistent Offenders.
The possible yet likely and lasting effects of crime and violence related mass media are impacts that can be prevented, and are advised to keep away from our children, the future of this generation. The research presented clearly shows evidence for crime and violence related media being an issue of concern in regards to our children. Other factors do influence the paths a child is placed on from birth, but these factors do not necessarily dictate a child’s destiny. And while the same factors may not be the sole reasons behind a child’s fate, they do play quite a part, especially when paired with the negative effects of crime and violence filled mass media. The effects can be avoided or at least minimized, and this will increase the chances of a better character and lifestyle. While it may be hard to escape, the effects of crime and violence related media should be made known to the public and for the sake of our children and the future of our societies, safety, supervision, and caution should be taken to the benefit of the brains of the tender and
In England, conforming to the Civitas’s Crime report Youth Crime in England and Wales (2010) the youngest age that someone can be prosecuted is as young as ten years old. It is also mentioned that trailing, patrolling and applying penalties on young offenders costs almost four billion pounds annually. The numbers of first time offences committed by a young person has decrease over the years; according to the Youth Justice Statistics (2014) youth crime is down by 63% since 2002. In regards to the offences themselves, nearly every offence category has decreased in reoccurrence with exception to drug offences declares Civitas’s Youth Crime in England and Wales (2010). The same report states that theft and handling remains the highest volume category taking up 21% of all youth crime. It is shortly followed by violence against a person, 19.5%, and criminal damage, 11.9%. It can be concluded from both aforementioned reports that crime in the UK is decreasing. Contrariwise to this, youth reoffending rates are soaring concludes Civitas’s Youth Crime in England and Wales (2010).
The Soaring Juvenile Crime Rate It is comforting to know that, according to recent crime statistics, crime rates are dropping among adults. However, for teens the crime rate is soaring. Between 2000 and 2004, the rate at which adults age 25 and older committed homicides declined 22%; yet the rate jumped 16% for youths between 14 and 17. This age group surpassed the 18 - 24-year-old group in the early 2000's as the most crime-prone. (Between 1966 and 2001, 18 - 24 showed a 62% increase in homicides; 14 - 17 showed a 124% increase in murders.)
On average an American child will see 16,000 murders and 200,000 acts of violence by the age of 18 through the television. Thousands of studies from the 1950s to the present day have all suggested that viewing violent acts will increase violent behavior while only less than 20 have suggested otherwise (Boyse). As our children are exposed to these 16,000 murders and 200,000 violent acts one can only conclude that aggression, crime and violence can only increase in our younger generations from being exposed to the current media.
Individual, social, family and community conditions, as well as interactions, influence juvenile’s behaviour and how they act in situations regarding crime (The National Academies Press, 2017). Some factors include children who are involved in abusive home lives, social isolation, poor education and low family income. It is widely recognised that the more risk factors, environmental and individual influence a child has, the higher their risk is of delinquent and criminal behaviour (ACS Distance Education, 2015). Research found that children from broken homes are nine times more likely to commit serious offences not only as juveniles but also later in their adult lives (Bloxham, 2017). This shows the need for the criminal justice system to address childhood crime when it occurs rather than when it becomes more serious as juveniles reach adulthood.
Youth crime is generally thought as being a very recent and modern day phenomenon, however this is widely untrue. Juvenile crime has been recorded ever since the early 17th Century and yet it has only been within the last 100 years that it has become such a significant issue with the general public (Goldson and Muncie, 2006). It is widely known that the present population are much more aware of youth crime and the implications it causes than ever before. There are endless theories as to why crime occurs and about the correct approach to combat it, the main conflict being over whether to treat young people as a threat or as a victim, which is a debate that still continues to this day (Omaji,
Synder, Scott. “Movie portrayals of juvenile delinquency: part II—Sociology and psychology,” Adolescence. Summer 1995. First Search. Feb 2007
The criminal activities these individuals can be involved in can range from theft, robbery, burglary, stealing/dealing drugs,etc. The environment in which they grow up in causes them to enact in these irrational behaviors. Individuals are not aware of any other way of life which results in them getting into trouble and having a criminal record. It is stated that “poverty can lead to high levels of stress that in turn may lead individuals to commit theft, robbery, or other violent acts. Moreover, poverty may lead to an actual or perceived inferior education, which would cause youth to count on less access to quality schools, jobs, and role models(Ludwig,1).
Television violence is also a cause of both violent and aggressive behavior in teenage boys. According to the evidence in a study done by Turner, Hesse, and Peterson-Lewis, it was concluded that watching television violence had a long-term increase in aggression in boys (Hough 1). In addition to this study, Dr. William A. Belson evaluated fifteen hundred boys, aged thirteen to sixteen years, and he determined that boys with heavy television exposure are more likely to commit violent acts than other boys (Langone 51). In Belson’s study, he discovered that the effect of each violent act on television was collective, and over time, Belson discovered that the boys engaged in many aggressive acts, including painting graffiti, breaking windows, aggressive play, swearing, and threatening other boys with violence (Kinnear 26).
Solutions to Juvenile Crime Crime is a plague that has haunted American citizens for centuries. The severity of crime has ranged from running a red light to cold blooded murder. Statistics indicate that crime rates have been on the rise in the past decade, especially in juvenile crime. Statistics show that, ‘the number of youths aged 14 and younger who have been charged with homicide has jumped by 43 percent in the past twenty years’ (Kids With No Hope, No Fear, No Rules, And No Life, 2).