Juvenile Delinquency: Perception Versus Reality
If an adolescent, dressed in a school uniform but sullen in attitude, sits next to you on the subway, would you worry about your safety? The community you live or work in may have an unspoken wariness about juveniles, perhaps manifesting in the avoidance of areas where adolescents congregate or through local businesses limiting how many students are allowed in a store. What feeds that wariness?
Given that many interactions between juveniles and law enforcement may not result in an arrest, due in part to the distinction between juvenile and adult, it is difficult to establish accurate conclusions about trends in delinquency.
In this Discussion, you compare the difference between perception and reality with regard to juvenile crime as well as compare that reality with other societies.
Post a one-page paper to the following:
Why does juvenile violence still seem to persist or be more extreme despite general downward trends?
Is the United States unique in this respect?
Resources/Readings
Agnew, R., & Brezina, T. (2017). Juvenile delinquency: Causes and control (6th ed.). New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
Chapter 2, “How Is Delinquency Measured?” (pp. 25–44) (PDF)
Juvenile Delinquency: Causes and Control, 6th by Agnew, R.; Brezina, T. Copyright 2017 by Oxford University Press. Reprinted by permission of Oxford University Press via the Copyright Clearance Center.
Agnew, R., & Brezina, T. (2017). Juvenile delinquency: Causes and control (6th ed.). New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
Chapter 3, “How Much Delinquency Is There, and Is Delinquency Increasing?” (pp. 45–63) (PDF)
Juvenile Delinquency: Causes and Control, 6th by Agnew, R.; Brezina, T. Copyright 2017 by Oxford University Press. Reprinted by permission of Oxford University Press via the Copyright Clearance Center.
