Juvenile Delinquency: A Brief Study

Who is a Juvenile?

A juvenile is a young person who has not met a specific age as prescribed by the law of a country and doesn't abide resemblance as a matured person who can be made legally liable for his criminal activities.

What is Juvenile Delinquency ?

Juvenile delinquency is the participation by a minor child, in illegal behavior or activities. Juvenile delinquency is also used to refer to children who exhibit a persistent behavior of mischievousness or disobedience, so as to be considered out of parental control, becoming subject to legal action by the court system.

What are some of the causes of juvenile delinquency ?

• School Problems - When a child misses a lot of schools they do not reap the benefits of education or learn the discipline of attending school each day. When a minor struggle to learn or has a parent that is simply not interested in making sure that the child attends school regularly, that child can eventually end up in situations that lead to criminal activity.

• Economic Problems - Lack of food, clothing or a secure place to stay can also lead to criminal activity. Children will turn to steal when they are hungry. If a minor is in a position to not have their most basic needs met, there is a high potential for many types of criminal activity to take place.

• Substance Abuse (Home Life) - When there is a home life that has substance abuse taking place within the home, there is a high risk for criminal activity by the minors in that home. Crimes may be committed to getting necessities that are not being provided, or they may be committed to helping their caregiver support their habits.

• Substance Abuse (Personal) - When a teen is using drugs or alcohol there is a significantly higher risk for criminal activity. This is for two reasons. First, the minor will commit crimes so that they can support their habit. The second reason is that the decision-making process in the minor is altered and they may do things that they have not actually thought through.

• Physical Abuse At Home - When a child or teen is being physically abused at home it is not unusual for them to act out when away from home. This is generally in the form of more violent crimes against people or property.

• Lack Of Adult Interaction - Children are influenced by those around them. That is the natural order of things. Children who do not have an adult influence in their life to teach them right from wrong, encourage them to stay within the law, or just be a presence in their lives are more prone to criminal activity.

• Peer Pressure (Neighborhood Influence) - Peer pressure is a very real thing, and minors will often act out in front of their “friends” so that they feel accepted and are a part of a group and ids reasons for juvenile delinquency. In more dangerous neighborhoods you may also see children acting out in fear of gang activity. Minors make choices to protect themselves or to impress gang members to protect their own safety.

Effects of Juvenile Delinquency

• Effects on the Victims - The victim may incur expenses related to lost wages, health care, or psychological care in addition to the cost of replacing damaged or destroyed items.
• Effects on the Juvenile Delinquent - He or she may lose his or her freedom while being incarcerated or placed on probation. The juvenile may lose ground academically as well. It also puts him or her in relationships with other delinquents, who may be more sophisticated or influential.
• Effects on the Families - the family have to cope with the needs of the child who is in trouble, but they may also have to raise large amounts of money to pay for lawyers. In addition, the family has to face the ethical issues of responsibility to the victims of the child's crime.
• Effects on the Community - There is a correlation between juvenile delinquency and drug use, gang involvement, alcohol abuse, and sexual behavior. All of these issues challenge communities by making neighborhoods unsafe and costing large amounts of public money to be spent on law enforcement.
• Effects on Society -  It is a serious problem that challenges the efforts of government agencies, politicians, educators, faith communities, and nonprofit organizations alike.

Prevention of Juvenile Delinquency

Prevention is necessary for such children. Firstly, identification of such juveniles and then providing them with the required treatment is of utmost importance. These adolescents become habitual offenders if not timely stopped from committing offences. Moreover, the most effective way to prevent juvenile delinquency has indubitably been to assist children and their families from the very beginning. The State programs attempt at early intervention, allowing numerous groups to tackle this problem in a number of ways. There are many Jurists and criminologists who suggest various provisions for the prevention of juvenile delinquency. Some of the provisions that are very useful for the welfare, development and growth of the juveniles have been mentioned below.

• Individual Programs - It involves the prevention of delinquency through counselling, psychotherapy and proper education.

• Environmental Programs - involves the employment of techniques with a view to change the socio-economic context likely to promote delinquency.

Delinquency Prevention is the broad term for all efforts aimed at preventing youth from getting involved in criminal, or other antisocial activities. Various governments are recognizing the importance of allocating resources for the prevention of delinquency. Prevention services include activities such as substance abuse education, treatment, family counselling, youth mentoring, parenting education, educational support and youth sheltering.

Conclusion

The exploitation of children is one of the many evils present in our society. Such abuse has an enduring and profound effect on a Childs life. The problem of child abuse is serious because it forces the child to react or behave in such a way which is harmful to both society and him. This delinquent behavior of the adolescent is due to the mental trauma that he goes through in the early stages of his life. The abuse further varies in nature as physical, sexual, psychological or as a combination of them influencing these youngsters in a negative way.

It is important to eradicate this practice from society to keep control of the problem of Juvenile Delinquency. It is in the best interest of the deviant child to rehabilitate him as early as possible an integrate him back into society. The State has a duty to protect the rights of these children and to come up with reformative methods to inculcate values in these children which can socially uplift and give confidence to them so that they can further play a constructive role in the society.