Final Exam GuideWednesdayMarch 28 th The Family & Delinquency- Being abused at home is a big predictor of delinquency- Nuclear family:-- Mom, dad and two kids- Extended family:-- Aunts, uncles, grandparents-- All living together-- Now broken down into smaller nuclear families- Now nuclear families are also breaking down- Family has a huge influence on youth behavior-- They teach you a lotThe Changing American Family- Since 1970 there have been some key changes in families:-- Family makeup** 70% of kids in the US live with 2 parents** By age 16 about 40% of kids experience divorce or separation of parents** 70% of blacks experience this by 16-- Child care** Most families put their child in day care** Family day care: 3-9 kids, informal setting** The people who are raising kids have changed-- Economic stress** 20-25% of kids live in poverty** 8% of kids live in extreme povertyThe Family’s Influence on Delinquency- The family is the primary source and parents are the key agents of socialization- 4 categories of family dysfunction seem to promote delinquent behaviors:-- Family break up** Parents are informal agents of social control** Divorce is more negative than a natural loss** Less opportunity for parental attachment** Big factors of divorce: nature of separation, quality of care afterwards** Kids raised away from father are more likely to drop out of school, get pregnant or get arrested – this is even more true for boys-- Family conflict** Family discourse and violence leads to delinquency** Doesn’t matter if you just witness it or actually experience it-- Family competence** Bad parents produce bad kids – parental effectiveness matters** Authoritarian: demanding, not understanding** Permissive: responsive, but let’s them do whatever** Reject/neglecting: doesn’t care at all, neither demanding or responsive** Authoritative (best!): demanding yet responsive** Key aspects of how attached and involved a parent is encourages the child to have opinions, uses fair and consistent discipline, avoid disciplining physically and use inductive disciplining (explain yourself)-- Family deviance** Criminal parents are more likely to have criminal kids** More likely to be authoritarians and in jail (absent)** Both a genetic influence and shared environmentChild Abuse & Neglect- Any physical, emotional or sexual trauma inflicted on a child-- Including neglect of proper care- About 900,000 children are victims each year- Most common form: neglect- Most frequent violent offense: simple assault- Correlates of abuse-- Age: most likely under 5-- Race: blacks have higher rates than whites-- Social class: low SES most likely** Less than $15,000/year** The poorer they are the worse off- The typical child abuser is usually the mother- 4 key factors associated with child abuse:-- Parents who were beaten themselves-- Parents who use drugs/alcohol** 40% of cases involve this-- The presence of an unrelated adult** Stepparents** Especially for simple assault-- Isolated and alienated families** Those that lack social support and moneyAbuse, Neglect & Delinquency- 70-80% of offenders came from an abused background-- Abused kids most likely to engage in delinquency- 50% of kids hospitalized for abuse were later arrested for offending- How would the following theories explain this (TEST QUESTION)-- Self-control theory** Development of self-control comes from effective, authoritative parenting-- General strain theory** Abuse is the introduction of negative stimulus which causes strain and delinquent coping-- Social control theory** Can’t develop key bonds from parents-- Social learning theory** Self-select into the same situationMondayApril 2 nd Drug Use & Delinquency- Drug use is a type of delinquency not a cause-- A relationship between the two is spurious- Drug use has declined in most categories- Alcohol is the most commonly abused drug by teens (TEST QUESTION)-- Followed by marijuana- Girls have higher rates of prescription drug use than guysPathways to Drug Abuse- Alcohol is a gateway drug-- Most serious drug users start with this- Physical or sexual abuse- Behavior or emotional problems-- 7x more likely- Dealing-- Associated with drug use-- Does drug dealing pay** Studies range from saying they make $24,000 - %5,000** Basically they have no ideaLinking Drug Use to Delinquency- 3 major types of drug related delinquency-- Pharmacological** The actual effects of the drugs caused the crime** Marijuana doesn’t cause criminality** Alcohol is most consistently linked to delinquency and violence (1/2 of all murders and suicides involve alcohol)-- Economically compulsive** Commit crimes motivated by the need for more drug money-- Systemic** Associated with the illegal sale of drugs** Direct: stealing from a drug dealer** Indirect: make fun of you for dealing so you kill them- Drug market depends on informal social control-- Can’t call the cops if someone steals your drug money-- Violence is used to control others instead- Systemic is the most common type of drug related delinquency- 1984: influx of dealers with the creation of crack cocaineDrug Control Strategies- Possible outcomes of policing drugs-- Subterfuge: if you police an area for drugs the dealer will learn and hide-- Displacement: if you police an area for drugs the dealers will just move locations** i.e.: Operation Safe Streets-- Replacement: if you arrest a dealer another will just take his spot** More prisoners with the same amount of dealers on the street- The harm reduction approach-- Primary focus: reduce the social costs of drugs on society** Reduce harm to both addict and society-- Components of approach** Make more drug treatment clinics available** Make professionals available to addicts for help** Needle exchange programs** Expand drug courts and diversion programsPeers & Delinquency- Peers have an increasingly important influence on behavior during adolescence-- Free of social control during this time-- Exposure to delinquent peers** 95% of 11 year olds don’t know anyone who smoked pot** 25% don’t know anyone who smoked pot at 18-- Time spent with peers increases** 12% of free time is spent with peers at age 11** 52% of free time is spent with peers at 18-- Perceived importance of peer relations** Peaks at age 17-- Loyalty to peers- Delinquent peers as “sticky friends”-- Once you acquire them they stay aroundWednesdayApril 4 th Peer Relations & Delinquency