Have you ever watched the news and seen that the most shocking crimes committed are by young juveniles and in rare cases small children? Do you wonder why they did it? Many of us do not realize the type of background and the type of lifestyle they lived in before the crime was committed. A lot has to do with how these young juveniles are being raised and the type of environment they are surrounded by. Juvenile delinquents are teens and children, since they are so young the way they learn is by visualizing what surrounds them. But most importantly, are these juveniles receiving the support from their loved ones? The film, Boyz N the Hood explores the elements of belief, involvement, attachment, and commitment through Hirschi’s Social Bond Theory.…
Social learning is described as learning new behaviours by observing others. These behaviours being observed can be of good or bad behaviour. There are certain things that can influence human behaviours, for example media violence, films, TV and computer games. Today the internet is powerful and has the power to influence behaviour, online games portray extreme violence that both children and adults can participate in. With technology becoming more advanced and the digital world available more easily to young people it is becoming a concern that this is having a serious effect on attitudes towards violence, in the sense of what is the correct way to behave and what is not (Oates, 2010, p. 103).…
Certain behaviors demonstrated by the adolescent become unregulated and uncontrolled. These youths grow up and due to their unregulated behavior, consequently corrupt the future youths of the community they live in (Why Do Youth Join Gangs?). Their behaviors become cultural norms within the community resulting in the creation of barriers that prevent social and economic opportunities. The defiant character that may manifest from gang affiliation produces a “fatalistic view of the world” providing the youth with the interpretation that everything or anything that happens around them is fate and…
Culture in urban communities, also referred to as inner-cities, are growing increasingly violent. In the article, The Code of the Streets by Elijah Anderson, he begins to take an in-depth look at the root of the evil. He deduces that economic factors, parenting and the troublesome environments largely influence the violent norms within this culture.…
In the journal article “Violence, Older Peers, and the Socialization of Adolescent Boys in Disadvantaged Neighborhoods” by David J. Harding, Harding (2009) suggests that disadvantaged neighborhoods influence how adolescents make romantic and educational decisions. Adolescents are also more likely socialized with the more accessible older people in the neighborhood who don’t have a job, and work on the streets. The young people feel that socializing with older men in their community that work in the “underground” economy helps with navigation through the dangerous streets and the older men influence their decision.…
The author, Copper Thompson, suggests that violence maintains the two most critical socializing forces in a boy’s life. He also suggests that society advocates violence. I agree society definitely enforces physical violence, to an extent. Sports, movies etc. promotes violence as competiveness, toughness, aggressiveness and power.…
The Social Disorganization Theory provides that if relationships in the family and friendship groupings are good, neighborhoods are stable and cohesive, and people have a sense of loyalty to the area, then social organization is sound. When these standards are lacking there is social disorganization. These theory list four key elements that constitute social disorganization. The first is low economic status. The second is a mix between different ethnic groups. The third is highly mobile residents moving in and out of the area. The fourth is disrupted families and broken rates (or epidemiology) of crime and delinquency. This theory explains much of the crime in inner cities. One great example of this can be seen in the case of James Darby. The theory also emphasizes the role of the community in the development of social norms and individual conduct. This theory explains the development of subcultures and how their values differ from those of mainstream society. This theory, however, does not explain criminals who grew up in communities like the suburbs or in extremely rich sections of towns and still commit crimes. This theory is extremely helpful in given possible ways of helping reduce crime rates (i.e. community outreach programs, neighborhood watches, etc). The basic tenant is the community taken a more active role in their community and its members. On a scale of 1-5, this theory rates a 4. While, it explains a portion of crime it does not explain all crime or give reduction techniques that have proven to reduce crime rates by a convincing number.…
Simply living in such an environment places young people at special risk of falling victim to aggressive behavior. Although there are often forces in the community which can counteract the negative influences, by far the most powerful being a strong, loving, "decent" (as inner-city residents put it) family committed to middle-class values, the despair is pervasive enough to have spawned an oppositional culture, that of "the streets," whose norms are often consciously opposed to those of mainstream society. These two orientations--decent and street--socially organize the community, and their coexistence has important consequences for residents, particularly children growing up in the inner city. Above all, this environment means that even youngsters whose home lives reflect mainstream values--and the majority of homes in the community do-- must be able to handle themselves in a street-oriented environment.…
Without having a very good background in criminology, it's fairly safe to say that an individual that grows up will have an affect on how that person behaves to different situations that may present themselves in that person's life. Many different arguments can arise from this interpretation. One could argue that is environmental and bio-psychological factors that affects how a person were to behave which could lead to crime, but this is not always the case. More times than not, crime is perpetuated because of the conditions that people of the community are currently living in. A majority of these neighborhoods are poverty stricken for a variety of factors and because of the degradation of the community, people are stuck in this cyclical trap of poverty. The conception of the “American Ghetto” is a vicious cycle of factors that are not entirely in the control of the people living in poor neighborhoods. Poverty does not just happen, however.…
Clifford R. Shaw and Henry D. McKay (107) observed Juvenile Delinquency in urban areas, and one of the first things they discussed in their chapter was the different values in separate economic areas of the city, and how the socioeconomic status contributes to the amount of crime. Secondly, they discussed differential social organization, which includes the differences in values between the communities (Shaw and McKay). A Theory of Race, Crime and Urban inequality is explained by Robert J. Sampson and William Julius Wilson (114) and they discussed the effects of community structure of race and crime in urban areas. Another thing that Sampson and Wilson (116) debated was the ecological concentration of race and social dislocations. Finally, they discuss the structure of…
Child abuse usually spreads from family to family as children learn from their parents and their habits. Adults who abuse their children need to get help as well as the children who have been abused to stop further abuse from spreading. Both of these problems include violence and continue violence’s chain reaction. Many people might think that violence isn’t Chicago’s most pressing issue, and some may believe that poverty is Chicago’s most concerning issue. Although this is a valid concern, violence takes a big part in poverty and therefore the problem of poverty itself is not the greatest issue. For example, in Englewood in 2004-2008, 42% of households were under the poverty line and because of that, the homicide rates were 48 per 100,000. Violence causes poverty and because of that, poverty is not Chicago’s roughest issue. Violence is Chicago’s most pressing issue as it is the root cause of many other problems. Violence has to be stopped in order to make Chicago a better place and to eliminate hundreds of other problems that the residents of Chicago suffer. With the help of certain political figures, we can get rid of the majority of the gang activity in Chicago and therefore decrease the rates of…
The people that live in this neighborhood learn different values and techniques that is associated with committing a crime. The social learning theory argues that neighborhoods or not social disorganized, but they are organized in a different way(Paynich & hill, 2010,p.54,58,59).…
The number of violent encounters has readily declined, yet, violence has flooded the streets of Chicago, Illinois. In 2012 there were over five hundred murders committed in the city of Chicago alone (Lemmer, Bunsinger, & Lurigio, 2008). The desensitization of communities have become more apparent as the acceptance of gang activity has become part of the norm. Observation of vicarious behavior by other social groups suggest that the rationalization of choice is desired, so long as gangs conform bonds across city streets (Lilly,Cullen, & Ball, 2011). Predicting the future is not too far-fetched, when it comes to socialization. Many theorists suggest that society can’t afford acceptance of crime without accepting some responsibility. Resulting from the absence of internalized rules and regulations, criminal behavior is governed by the justice system (Lilly,Cullen, & Ball, 2011). Stepping deeper into the recent gang activities, that have prevailed in society within Chicago, former Gangster Disciple Harold Ward, speaks of the corruption among leaders in the city and their approval of the cartels from Mexico who have taken over their society as a whole (Pundit, 2013). Whether people agree or disagree, social disorganization among their neighborhoods is one of the dominant perspectives that defines criminalization of gang members. In…
Chicago police are so busy fighting major crime, that people are starting to feel panicked and alone in the battle against violence. This sense of nervousness results in an increased possession of illegal firearms throughout the city, which in return is a possible reason for the high crime rates in Chicago. Not only do the police and gun problems result in violence, but so does the quality of life. The main problem with the quality of life in Chicago is that the youth is being introduced to violence at a very young age. Kids in many of the impoverished neighborhoods where the crime happens most, commonly spend most of their time out on the streets playing with other children. Some of these children don’t have great lives at home or a home at all. According to The Chicago Tribune, "There's too many young people who are out here who have no family, and so their friends become their family,"(Gorner). This can result in a dangerous situation because without the right role models, these children are prone to befriending dangerous people and can start to interact in the violence themselves, creating a whole cycle of danger. Obviously, Chicago can’t relieve its violence problem overnight, but with enough support and effort Chicago can surely bounce back to what it once was. The main solutions require additional employment opportunities in the city, an increase of community programs and a better relationship between law enforcement and citizens. These efforts will hopefully help to put an end to current violence in Chicago and prevent new crimes from happening in the…
The abundance of gangs can bring fear and violence to every block of a city. In addition to suffering unacceptably high numbers of deaths and injuries, gang plagued neighborhoods are overwhelmed by intimidation, economic and physical decay, and withdrawal from civic engagement. As these neighborhoods decline, the bonds that hold communities together weaken: children fear going to school; parks become unusable; shopping and taking a bus to work become dangerous ventures.…