Juvenile Delinquency Essay

Juvenile Delinquency can be defined in three different ways; legal definition, role definition and the societal response definition. In the legal definition, it is the act that causes them to be juvenile delinquents. The role definition, it is the actor that who is perceived to be a delinquent. In the societal response, it is the audience reaction that defines the person as deviant or a delinquent.
With all those definition the main thing that has to be considered to judge if a person is a juvenile delinquent is their age. A juvenile in the state of Texas is between the ages of 7-17. Even though one cannot be brought in and tried upon in court until they reach the age of 10. A juvenile’s first social connection is with their family. Families are the first and primary socializing agents. If one is looking to find a way to rethink the causes of juvenile delinquency and why it happens; the basic starting point begins with the family system. A strong, supportive family is the basis of a child’s life. If a child does not have that, it is likely they will become a deviant. In our textbook Thompson and Bynum provided us with many plans for rethinking delinquency. The plan that caught my attention was the “Strengthening the Family” plan. The family is the primary source of socialization.
If the family hood does not have a strong bond the teen might turn to other groups to socialize with. Those groups may not be the best option and will lead or cause the teen to become delinquent. By strengthening the family Thompson and Bynum were not “referring to the hollow political rhetoric of promoting ‘traditional family values’.” (pg. 440). Therefore, for strengthening a family, they were talking about ways to help families raise children; socially, financially, and legally. Also holding parents accountable for the actions of their minor children. Parents need help dealing with a trouble child. Most families have smaller children that require more attention than the older ones. Whereas the older ones need just as much attention or even more because they are going through several transitional phases in a short time. If the parents could have the proper daycare, paid leave when necessary and support, the families would prosper. The child would have the right amount of attention and love. I am not saying the child is not loved, I am simply saying the parents are focused on working and providing a decent home. If the job offers more help, then the parents could be home more and try to strengthen the family love and household. This plan to strengthen the family is a great option for rethinking juvenile delinquency.
It’s a plan to help the youth main socialization agent. It makes the perfect sense to start where a youth socializing life begins. In chapter 8 of our book it states that one way to prevent delinquency is to “provide meaningful participation in family discussions, decisions, and interaction” (pg. 206). If the parents get the help they need from their workforce, then they will be in return to sit down more with the youth. That could also work in the negative, if the parent chooses to use that extra time for other activities; then the punishing and holding the parent accountable come into
effect. Family is the first way to try to figure out how to decrease juvenile delinquency. The stronger the family the less chance for a youth turn into a deviant. This plan provided to us by Thompson and Bynum makes the most sense, it will help dramatically change a youth life if they see that their parents can be their more and also held responsible for their actions. Yes the youth might have committed the crime but the parents have to also see that they are accountable for what their child does. If we help provide parents with the proper resources necessary to raise children it will help strengthen the family.