The Psychology of a Juvenile Delinquent Naiveté and lambs are two common symbolic representations of children. However, these ‘pure’ children can also be some of the most ruthless and disturbed beings on the planet. Juvenile delinquents are the small percent of children who act on their violent urges. Juvenile delinquents are minors that are “guilty of antisocial or criminal behavior” (Houghton Mifflin Company 951). All juveniles who commit these atrocious acts have some discrepant factor whether it is genetic or environmental, that has affected them, and in turn caused them to be psychologically disturbed. A wide variety of crimes can be committed by a juvenile. Anything an adult has the capability of doing, a child can also. However, reasons why they commit these crimes have a great variation, ranging from personal to economical reasonings. Hope of rehabilitation for the juvenile never ceases, because there are many treatment options that are available and can be utilized to help. Juveniles can be treated with different types of therapy, surgery, prescription medicine, and treatment programs. Despite the contributing factors of juvenile delinquency, family background and structure, along with the influence of peer pressure are the two most significant in determining the success of the juvenile. A primary shaper of the juvenile and their actions is the environment in which they grow up in. Family environment has the potential to have a major effect on the outcome and behaviors of the juvenile (Myers 430). Family has such a huge effect because it is the earliest source of interaction the juvenile experiences. According to Louise Gerdes, “72 percent of jailed juveniles Gustafson 2 come from a fragment... ... middle of paper ... ...orcement” (292). Juvenile psychology is important to study because juveniles are the future. Juveniles will one day become providers, parents, and leaders, and the best way to ensure the future of our country is to make sure the mental health of a child is solid. Any heinous act an adult can commit, children also have the capability to commit. When the child does not get help, their delinquency can evolve into being an adult offender, and may never be rehabilitated. Without the brain functioning satisfactorily, there will be chaos, disorder, and corruption. All of these can be caused by the structure and background of a family, in addition to the influences of peer pressure. We need to make certain our future adults are being raised in a safe and nurturing environment, and have healthy self-esteem so children will not fall prey to the trap of peer pressure.
Mental health treatment among juvenile is a subject that has been ignored by society for far too long. It has always been one of those intricate issues that lead to the argument of whether juveniles should receive proper treatment or imprisoned like any other criminals, and often trialed as adults. Many times, young people are often deprived of proper help (Rosenberg) However, we often overlook the fact that while they are criminals, they are still young, and fact or not, it is a matter of compassion that must be played from our side to help these youth overcome their harsh reality. As such, we do however see signs of sympathy shown towards juvenile. Juvenile health courts give help to youth to youth who have serious mental illness (Rosenberg). It is often asked in general, would mental health treatment cure juvenile criminals? In my opinion, when you look at the background of these young criminals, it is frequently initiated from negligence and feelings of betrayal (Browne and Lynch), of course leading to mental disorder. However, further zooming into their background, it is always proper treatment that saves them from their unfortunate circumstances. Research shows that giving juvenile criminals mental health treatment did not only reduce re-arrests but also further improve their ways of living among the society.
Juvenile Delinquency is a complicated subject because researchers and scholars have tried different methods to reduce it. Research shows that the methods which have had better results are those that are implemented in a way where the family of the juveniles gets involved in the process (Laub, 2014). A policy that will be advocated is the policy in the city of Santa Ana, CA: The Santa Ana Police Athletic and Academic League (SAPAAL). If we want to reduce delinquency and crime then we should focus on prevention rather than intervention. There is not one theory that explains why people commit crime, on the contrary, there are multiple well-known theories that argue for different explanations of delinquency. As learned through lectures
The study of juveniles is very important because children and adolescents are supposed to be the future of our world. Not only that, but we, the citizens of the United States, should pay more attention to juveniles and create a new set of laws that would prevent juveniles from committing any source of crimes. If we do something about it before any further problems involved, we can reduce the crimes of our communities by starting to work with our juveniles. This involves some rehabilitation and some specific programs that can help our juveniles not to get in problems.
In a study on juvenile offenders, researchers discovered that over 83% of juveniles showed signs and symptoms of disorders that may antedated their offenses. (Arline, May 2005). Problems with behavior may have been misunderstood for a lack of discipline instead of a disorder, and many juveniles with disorders came from a home with abuse present. In cases of juvenile offenders the courts are not doing enough evaluations on juvenile families, and eon the few that they do have on file their families are stated to be stable (Arline, May 2005). However, many juvenile offenders went through unthinkable circumstances with the members of the community they live in, parents, and agencies who played a role in their life prior to being in adult criminal system (Darden, 2014). A lot of juveniles who are in the criminal system have common elements in their non-profit profiles like regretful choices, mistrusting adults, robbed childhood, and being disappointed (Darden, 2014). For instance, a juvenile offender name Jennifer Pruitt, went through physical abuse, being exposed to drunken behavior, father sexually abusing her, and domestic abuse (Darden, 2014). She ran away fro home and confided in her neighbor as someone she could trust, but her neighbor convinced her to rob another neighbor (Darden, 2014). During the attempt to the rob the neighbor Pruitt ending up witnessing a murder, and was convicted of a felony murder that landed her more than twenty years in prison (Darden,
What is important to understand in terms at the difference between the juvenile and adult system is that there is a level of dependency that is created tween the two and the juvenile system focuses on how to help rather than in prison individuals at such a young age. However, it usually depends on the type of crimes that have been committed and what those crimes me for the families and how they impact of the greater society. The adult system distinguishes between dependence and delinquency mainly because there was a psychological transition that occurs with juveniles that is not always a predictor of a cyclical life of crime. However, if an adult is committed to the justice system there can be a dependency of delinquency and a cycle of crime that is more likely to be sustained at that age and level of cognitive ability then in comparison to a juvenile. The reasoning behind this is important is that is focused on maintaining a level of attention to the needs and capacity abilities of individuals living and working in different types of societies (Zinn et al.,
Juvenile delinquency may evolve around many different factors before it becomes a problem for society to solve. Gender and family structure can be a large and underlining cause of why children enter the criminal justice system. By examining the gender and family makeup, one could better understand how to treat a troubled individual.
During the adolescent year’s children goes through physical and mental changes which could cause them to act deviant. Family support and good family structure is needed to help an adolescent cope with changes in their behavior. Other family crises such as parents’ divorce, death, and economics factor can trigger a child to act out differently as a mean to seek attention. Juveniles are not as good at decision making as adults, because they are young and does not have much experience in life they could make bad decisions that would make their life difficult. Youngsters do not think of the consequences of their action thus “they face deciding whether to engage in a risky behavior, such as taking drugs, shoplifting, or getting into a fight, in situation involving emotions, stress, peer pressure, and little time for reflection” (national academic press). Adults could think rationally where as children do not develop to think rationally between the ages of ten and seventeen thus children should not be punished as bad as an adult.
According to the text “Juvenile Delinquency: The Core” the social structure theory associates juvenile delinquency rates to socioeconomic structure conditions, for example poor communities, families that are usually unemployed, families that have a continuous cycle of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), single parent households, families with incarcerated fathers, sons and even moms and daughters. Some of these children are raised by grandparents or placed in the foster care system. Many young people in these communities are parents themselves – babies raising babies. This I know because this describes many of the youth in my community.
The dilemma of juvenile incarceration is a problem that thankfully has been declining, but still continues to be an ethical issue. The de-incarceration trend has coincided with a decrease in crime. It is hopeful that our nation is changing the approach to the treatment of juveniles in the criminal justice system. It means we know what to do and what is working, now just to follow through and continue the change to creating a juvenile justice system that is truly rehabilitative and gives youth tools to be able to be positive members of
Youths who have entered the justice system have often been diagnosed with mental disorders or diseases. “A majority of adolescents formally involved in juvenile court have at least one, if not more than one, significant emotional or learning impairment, or maltreatment experience” (Mallet, 2013). The existence of these diseases often effect the juvenile’s stability and ability to make rational decisions. Which may result in them engaging in criminal activities The prevalence of disruptive behavior disorders among youths in juvenile justice systems is reported to be between 30 percent and 50 percent (The mental health needs of juvenile offenders). The difficulties of these disorders are often
Juvenile delinquency is a serious problem and leads to negative outcomes for youth, families, and society as a whole. Adolescents under the age of 18 who are arrested for committing a criminal act are processed through a juvenile justice system. The juvenile justice system is grounded on the principle that the youth have different needs than adults. During adolescence, youth are forming their identities and still developing mentally, physically, socially, and emotionally. Due to their early stages of development, juveniles who violate the law should be treated differently than adults.
In the Juvenile Justice System there are many flaws that need to changed. Improving the system is definitely something Society should take into consideration. There are many holes within the juvenile systems that needs to be addressed. In this paper you would see the different options and issues that need to be addressed for a better success rate. Building more resources for families and counseling may solve many problems. The number one cause of juveniles misbehaving. Is just in the 4 Walls of the juvenile’s house. Rebuilding a family may have a better outcome to the juvenile success in the future. The first type of theory I am going to discuss the ecological theory. Ecological theory seeks to explain delinquency based on where
Juvenile delinquency is one of the major social issues in the United States today. Juvenile delinquency, also known as juvenile offending, is when “a violation of the law committed by a juvenile and not punishable by death or life imprisonment” (Merriam-webster.com). Although we have one justice system in America, the juvenile system differs from the adult juvenile system. Most juvenile delinquents range from as low as the age of seven to the age of seventeen. Once the delinquent or anyone turns the age of eighteen, they are considered an adult. Therefore, they are tried as an adult, in the justice system. There are many different reasons why a child would commit crime, such as mental and physical factors, home conditions, neighborhood environment and school conditions. In addition, there are a variety of effects that juvenile justice systems can either bad effects or good effects. Finally there are many different solutions that can reduce juvenile delinquency. As a result, juvenile delinquency is a major issue and the likeliness of it can be reduced. In order to reduce juvenile delinquency there has to be an understanding of the causes and the effects.
In today’s generation there are many children and teens that commit crimes to satisfy their self being. Every day we see in the news about the reasons why children or teens commit crimes like murder or homicide. Sentencing juveniles to life in prison is not a right response to prevent homicide and serious murder, because their brains are not fully develop and the bad environment they live in. Teenagers or children need to be remain unformed of preventing crimes in today’s society. With this said, juvenile’s mental brains, backgrounds and growth are the reasons why they are not proficient to maintain themselves in a prison cell.
Juvenile delinquency is a problem in today’s society. The problem has created a broad spectrum of both social and individual factors. The more that society learns about delinquency the more capacity it will have to combat against it. The youth are the future of this world, a corrupted juvenile body will ensure great hazard over time. Rehabilitating juvenile offenders into conventional members of society should be the goal of the criminal justice system.