Discuss juvenile delinquency. Include a discussion of the research on ethnicity and delinquency in your answer

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Juvenile delinquency refers to acts that are either illegal because of age (e.g., underage smoking or drinking) or are illegal for all, but happen to be perpetrated by an individual without adult status. Although African-American and European-American teens report comparable numbers of delinquent acts, African-American youths are significantly more likely to be arrested for both nonserious and serious offenses. The causal patterns of juvenile delinquency are quite complicated. None-the-less, patterns do emerge. Children who are aggressive, hyperactive, and antisocial are more likely to show delinquent behavior in adolescence. Other factors related to delinquency include: (1) lower verbal IQ scores, (2) immature moral reasoning, (3) low self-esteem, (4) feelings of alienation, and (5) impulsivity. Personal factors include: (1) poor school performance, (2) early substance abuse, (3) early sexuality, and (4) having delinquent friends. It is, of course, very difficult to determine the direction of causality. For example, it is just as likely that an adolescent who abuses a substance will engage in other delinquent acts as it is that being delinquent may prompt one to abuse a substance.