Juvenile Offending

TABLE OF CONTENT

INTRODUCTION...................................................................................

LITERATURE REVIEW...........................................................................

a) Demographic information.

b) Offense history.

c) Family and social factors.

d) Educational factors.

METHODS.........................................................................................

RESULT............................................................................................

RECOMMENDATIONS........................................................................

a) Participants.

b) Measure.

SUMMARY..........................................................................................

CONCLUSION......................................................................................

REFERENCES.....................................................................................

INTRODUCTION

I chose this subject because juvenile offending is a serious concern in our society today. Recent crime statistics show that "at-risk" teens are among the fastest growing groups of offenders (FBI, 2009). The term "at-risk" teens encompass a wide range of definitions. According to Kazdin (2005) "at-risk" refers to the increased likelihood over base rates in the population that a particular outcome will occur. Similarly, Dryfoos (2006) defined the term as applying to young people who are at-risk for not maturing into responsible adults.

Research indicates that certain factors in an adolescent life increase the likelihood that an adolescent will be involved in crime. The potential for criminal behavior increases with an increase in the n umber of risk factors. Risk factors include being part of a low-income family, a single-parent family, having readily access to drugs and guns; getting poor school grades; having a lack of adequate supervision; being in numerous conflicts with parents; having a parent who abuses alcohol; having poor impulse control; and exhibiting sensation-seeking behavior.

Finally, the results of my literature review as well as my interviews with professionals in the juvenile justice system, community leaders, parents, and of course incarcerated juveniles suggest that the judicial system, parents and community alike must share in a collaborative effort to ensure an inclusive comprehensive plan is created and implemented to address juvenile delinquency. The focus of this proposal is to develop a Police Mentoring Program (PMP) for first time offenders who are identified by the Juvenile Judicial System, with the final decision coming from the appointed liaison officer and members of the community which will be based on the child's likelihood to succeed in the program.

Literature Review

Juvenile offending is a serious concern in the United States. Men and women younger than 18 years old comprise approximately 19% of the population (Census Bureau, 2000). However, recent crime statistics show that juvenile offenders were responsible for approximately 29% of criminal arrests in the United States in 2009, accounted for 18% of all persons arrested in 1998, and are among the fastest growing groups of offenders (FBI, 2009). The percentage of offenses committed by children and adolescents increased by 24% from 2000 to 2010, whereas the percentage of offenses committed by adults over the same time period increased by only 3.8% (FBI, 2009).

For violent offending, juvenile arrest trends show a 15% increase, compared with a 3.8% increase in adult offenders (FBI, 2009). During this period, several important trends emerged in the arrest rates of juvenile offenders regarding specific types of crime: arrest rates decreased for homicide (23%), rape (3%), burglary (22%), and larceny (4%). In contrast, there were increases in arrest for aggravated assault (21%), arson (10%), and robbery (9%), (FBI, 2009). This may be particularly problematic, considering that first-time juvenile offenders have a longer period at risk for re-offending over the course of a lifetime, and a younger age at first offense has been associated with higher risk of re-offending (Durham, 1996; Walters, 1996).

According to Cattle, Lee and Heilbrun's (1996) meta-analysis study to identify risk factors that best predict juvenile recidivism, defined as re-arrest for offending of any kind. Twenty-three published studies, representing 15,265 juveniles, met inclusion criteria. Eight groups of predictors were compared: (a) demographic information, (b) offense history, (c) family and social factors, (d) educational factors, (e) intellectual and achievement scores, (f) Substance use history, (g) clinical factors, and (h) formal risk assessment. Other relatively strong predictors of juvenile recidivism included family problems which involved child abuse and broken homes; also ineffective use of leisure time; and conduct problems which involved suspension from schools and criminal arrest.

A meta-analysis conducted by Simourd and Andrews (1994) focused only on juvenile delinquency, although it did not distinguish first-time offenders from recidivists or consider adult criminal behavior. Simourd and Andrews included 60 studies, with risk factors categorized as follows: (a) social class, (b) family structure or parental problems, (c) personal distress, (d) minor personality variables, (e) parent-child relations, (f) educational difficulties, (g) temperament or conduct problems, and (h) antisocial peers or attitudes. Although this meta-analysis made no distinction between outcomes of initial offending and re-offending, it does provide some useful findings.

First, no gender differences were reported; male and female juveniles were found to have similar risk factors for offending. Second, socioeconomic status, family structure, parental problems, and personal distress were not predictive of offending for either male or female juveniles. Finally, the risk factors most strongly predictive of offending were (a) antisocial peers or attitudes (53 studies); (b) temperament or conduct problems, such as psychopath, impulsive, and substance use (45 studies); (c) educational difficulties, such as poor grades, dropout status (34 studies);