Juvenile Delinquency Cumulative Final Exam Notes Exam 1 - Thinking about Delinquency o “delinquency” concept developed in 1818 as a way of differentiating minor offenders (<18) from adult offenders o An entirely new and separate court system was developed to process “delinquents” o Who is delinquent?  A person who has violated the law before reaching 18 years of age (unless the individual has been sentenced as an adult) o Differences between minor and adult offenders:  Juveniles processed by a different legal system  Juveniles are seen as needing treatment, not punishment  Juveniles can “get into trouble” for committing status offenses (truancy, etc.)  Parents can be held responsible for children’s delinquency - The Social Construction of Delinquency o Like adult crime, there is much variation in what is considered a delinquent act o There is much variation (and discretion) in who will be punished for committing delinquency o May depend on offenders:  Sex  Race/ethnicity  Social class  Attitude/behavior (including prior reward) o Youth are more likely than adults to be offenders  Those aged 15-19 make up 7% of the population  In 2010, according to the FBI, 14% of those arrested for violent crimes were teens; 22% for property crimes - Age and Crime o Youth are more likely to be involved in illegal behavior than adults o Why are young people more likely than adults to commit illegal behaviors?  They like to pursue thrill- and risk-seeking activities  Kids don’t have as many responsibilities or things to lose; fewer “stakes in conformity”  They are trying to mimic adult behavior  Adolescent delinquency is more visible and more likely to result in detection o Why do young people “age out” of delinquency  They become more future-oriented  They learn how to deal with problems pro-socially Take on more responsibilities  They become more aware of and concerned about risks and consequences of crime  Personalities change, brains develop - The Nature of Delinquency o Youth commit illegal acts at high rates  In 2010, 1.6 million youth arrested  Violence is second largest leading cause of death for ages 10-24 o Juvenile arrests are declining o What types of crime are juveniles most likely to be arrested for?  Non-violent - Larceny-theft, disorderly conduct, vandalism - Drug use/abuse  Violent - Minor assault o Robbery, aggravated assault, o Rape and murder much less common o Where do we find info about rates of juvenile delinquency/ how reliable and valid are these sources?  Types of Crime Data - Official statistics (law enforcement measures) o FBI Uniform Crime Report (UCR)  Reported by most law enforcement agencies  Provides number of crimes known to law enforcement and arrest rates for 29 offenses  Detailed info on 8 of these offenses o National Incident-based Reporting System (NIBRS)  Reported by law enforcement agencies in 31 states  Provides detail on 56 offenses - Official data o What do these data tell us?  Not how many are committing offenses, but how many are getting caught by law enforcement o What are their limitations?  They’re not valid source regarding number of crimes  Do not capture all offenses; underestimate delinquency (low validity)  Subject to errors or bias by law enforcement agencies (low reliability)  Can’t provide all the details about offenses that we may wanto What are their strengths?  Provides data on large populations  Depicts changes over time  Gives some details about the offenses (NIBRS)  Cheap and easy to access - Survey/Self-report Data o Limitations  Subjects may lie and over or under report offending or victimization (affects validity)  Subjects may not remember all offenses  May not understand the questions (affects validity and reliability)  Difficult and expensive to collect, especially on a large scale  Small studies have less generalizability o Strengths  Most valid source of information on the “dark figure” of crime - Especially good for collecting data on most hidden offenses  Potentially less biased than law enforcement measures  Can provide rich details about offenses - Who is most likely to be delinquent? o Do demographic characteristics cause delinquency?  No: they are “correlates” of offending o Gender and Delinquency  Males are more likely than females to be arrested - Girls made up 29% of all juvenile arrests in 2010  Gender differences are greatest for violent and serious crimes  Are there delinquent acts for which girls are more likely than boys to be arrested? - Prostitution  Possible explanations for gender differences - Differences in biology o Testosterone/ crime link has not been proven - Differences in mental health o Some evidence that girls are more likely to have “internalizing” disorders and boys are more likely to develop “externalizing” disorders - Differences in gender socialization o There is evidence that girls and boys differ in: Opportunities for crime  Parenting practices  Exposure to delinquent peers  Influence of delinquent peers  There are similarities in male and female delinquency - Both sexes are least likely to commit very violent crimes - National crime trends are similar for both sexes - Other demographic characteristics of offenders are similar for males and females - “risk factors” for delinquency are similar for both sexes o Race and delinquency  What is the relationship? - It depends on the source of data  Juvenile arrest records (2010 UCR data) - 66% of all arrestees were white o 47% violent crimes o 64% property crimes - Blacks make up about 17% of population aged 10-17. But black youth make up % of all arrests for: o Robbery- 67% o Murder- 56% o Simple assault- 38% o Burglary- 36% o Drug abuse violation- 24% o Vandalism- 20%  Race/ethnicity and substance abuse - Whites more likely reported drinking, smoking, marijuana followed by blacks and Hispanics  What can explain race/ethnic differences in arrest rates? - Differential processing by the juvenile justice system - Minority groups may hold attitudes less favorable to police and resist or protest police encounters  What might explain race/ethnic differences in delinquent behaviors? -