Although the U.S. delinquency rate has declined since the mid-1990s, it is still among the highest in the industrialized countries.
BACKGROUND:
In earlier times, children were thrown into jails with adults. Long prison terms and corporal punishment were common for adolescents and some adolescents were even sentenced to death for their crimes. Officials began to conclude that a separate court system for juveniles was necessary because of the previous harsh treatment. The consensus was that children and adolescents that committed these offenses should be helped rather than severely punished.
Parens Patriae: instead of lawyers arguing for the juvenile’s guilt or innocence, the court would act as a parent or guardian interested in protecting and helping the adolescent.
1899, Illinois: country’s first juvenile court.
Today: each state has a separate court system for juveniles . These courts generally handle two kinds of juveniles:
- Delinquent offender: juvenile that has committed a crime with adult status under federal, state, or local law.
- Status offender: juveniles considered unruly or beyond the control of their legal guardian. These acts are considered illegal acts that can only be committed by juveniles.
- These include: running away from home, skipping school, underage drinking, and disobeying authority.
The juvenile justice system has evolved over the years based on the premise that juveniles are different from adults and juveniles who commit criminal acts generally should be treated differently from adults. Separate courts, detention facilities, rules, procedures, and laws were created for juveniles with the intent to protect their welfare and rehabilitate them, while protecting public safety.
CAUSES:
Failure in school
- Leaving school early reduces the chance that juveniles will develop the social skills that are gained in school, such as learning to meet deadlines, following instructions, and being able to deal constructively with their peers.
Social Factors
- changes in the economy lead to fewer job opportunities for youth and rising unemployment in general
Community Impact
- neighborhood disorder – ex: gangs
- weak social connections within the neighborhood
- low levels of informal social control (the extent to which residents help each other to regulate the behavior of youths in the neighborhood
- low levels of collective efficacy
Family- life at home
- Broken homes can lead to stress for adolescent – ex: child maltreatment
- More families consist of one-parent households or two working parents; consequently, children are likely to have less supervision at home that was common in the traditional family structure. This lack of parental supervision is thought to be an influence on juvenile crime rates.
- Problem increases when parent labels adolescent “delinquent.” If an adolescent feels as through they are seen as a delinquent, the higher chance they will act as such.
A direct causal relationship has not yet been established.
DEVELOPMENTAL PATHWAYS:
Childhood aggression that continues and escalates as individuals age raises two key questions: Does the movement to serious delinquency progress in an orderly fashion, and is there a single dominant pathway or are there multiple pathways?
The onset of minor aggression (e.g., arguing, bullying) tends to occur first, followed by the onset of physical fighting (including gang fighting), and then by the onset of other violence such as robbery or rape.
- The Authority Conflict Pathway, which starts with stubborn behavior before age 12 and progresses to defiance and then to authority avoidance (e.g., truancy).
- The Covert Pathway, which starts with minor covert acts before age 15 and progresses to property damage and then to moderate and then to serious delinquency.
- The Overt Pathway starts with minor aggression and progresses to physical fighting and then to more severe violence (no minimum age is associated with this pathway).
(Loeber R., and Hay, D.F. 1997. ) Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Key issues in the development of aggression and violence from childhood to early adulthood. Annual Review of Psychology 48:371–410.