Juvenile Additional Content

Individual Views of Delinquency
1. Choice Theory – the first formal explanation of crime and delinquency held that human behavior
was a matter of choice. Since it was assumed that people had free will to choose their behavior,
those who violated the law were motivated by personal needs, such as greed, revenge, survival,
hedonism.
2. Trait Theory – a number of delinquency experts believe that the choice model is incomplete.
They believe it is wrong to infer that all youths choose crime simply because they believe its
advantages outweigh its risk. It that were the case, how could senseless and profitless crimes
such as vandalism and random violence be explained? These experts argue that human behavior
choices are function of an individual’s mental and/or physical make-up. Most law-abiding youths
have personal traits that keep them within the mainstream of conventional society.
3. Biological Theory – for most of the twentieth century, delinquency experts scoffed at the notion
that a youth’s behavior was controlled by physical condition present at birth. The majority of
delinquency research focused on social factors, such as poverty and family life that were
believed to be responsible for law-violating behavior.
4. Psychological Theory – some experts view delinquency as essentially psychological. After all,
most behaviors labeled delinquent – for example, violence, theft, sexual misconduct – seem to
be symptomatic of some underlying psychological problem.
Sociological Structure Theory
1. Social Structure Theory – in 1966, sociologist Oscar Lewis coined the phrase “culture of poverty”
to describe the crushing burden faced by the urban poor. According to Lewis, the culture of
poverty is marked by apathy, cynicism, helplessness, and mistrust of institutions such as police
and government. Mistrust of authority prevents the impoverished from taking advantage of the
few conventional opportunities available to them.
2. Social Process Theory – not all sociologists believed that merely living in impoverished,
deteriorated, and lower class areas is a determinant of a delinquent career. Instead, they argue
that the root cause of a delinquency may be traced to learning delinquent attitudes from peers,
becoming detached from school, or experiencing conflict in the home. Although social position
is important, socialization is considered to be the key determinant of behavior. If the
socialization process is incomplete or negatively focused, it can produce an adolescent with a
poor self-image who is alienated from conventional social institutions.
3. Social Reaction Theory – it is the third type of sociological theories of delinquency. According to
reaction theories, the way society reacts to individuals and the way the individual reacts to
society determine behavior. Social reactions determine which behavior are considered criminal
or conventional; they also determine individual behavior and can contribute to the formation of
delinquent careers. Being stigmatized or labeled by agents of social control, including official
institutions, such as parents and neighbors, is what sustain delinquent behaviors.
4. Social Conflict Theories – finds that society is in a constant state of internal conflict, and
different groups strive to impose their will on others. Those with money and power succeed in
shaping the law to meet their needs and maintain their interests. Adolescents whose behavior
cannot conform to the needs of the power elite are defined as delinquents and criminals.
Developmental Theories of Delinquency
1. Social Development Model Theory – in their social development model, Joseph Weis, Richard
Catalano, J. David Hawkins, and their associates show how different factors affecting children’s
social development over their life course influence their delinquent behavior patterns. As
children mature within their environment, elements of socialization control their developmental
process. Children are socialized and develop bonds to their families through four distinct
interaction process, namely:
a. The perceived opportunities for involvement in activities and interaction with others;
b. The degree of involvement in activities and interaction with others;
c. The children’s ability to participate in these interactions; and
d. The reinforcement they perceive for their participation.
2. Interaction Theory – Terrence Thornberry has proposed a developmental view of crime that he
calls “interactional theory”. He also finds that the onset of crime can be traced to a deterioration
of the social bond during adolescent, marked by weakened attachment to parents, commitment
to school, and belief systems that are consistent with their deviant lifestyle. They seek out the
company of other kids who share their interest and are likely to reinforce their beliefs about the
world.
3. Age-Graded Theory – if there are various pathways to crime and delinquency, are there trails
back to conformity? In an important 1993 work, Sampson and Laub identify the turning points in
a delinquent career. They reanalyzed the data originally collected by the Gluecks more than
forty years back. Using modern statistical analysis, Samson and Laub found evidence supporting
the developmental view. Their theory is known as age-graded theory because it recognizes that
different factors influence people as they go through the lifecourse. The most important
contribution is identifying the life events that enable young offenders to desist from crime as
they mature.
Strategies of Delinquency Prevention
1. General Deterrence – holds that the choice to commit a delinquent act is structured by threat of
punishment.
2. Specific Deterrence – holds that if offenders are punished severely, they experience will
convince them not to repeat their illegal acts. While general deterrence focuses on the potential
offenders, specific deterrence targets offenders who have already been convicted.
3. Situational Deterrence – rather than deterring or punishing individuals in order to reduce
delinquency rates, situation prevention strategies aim to reduce the opportunities for people to
commit particular crimes. The idea is to make it so difficult to commit criminal acts that would-
be delinquent offenders will be convinced that the risks of crime are greater than the rewards.
Controlling the situation of crime can be accomplished by increasing the effort, increasing the
risk, and reducing the reward attached to delinquency acts.
Three Levels of Delinquency Prevention
1. Primary Prevention – is directed at modifying and changing crime-causing conditions in the

overall physical and social conditions that lead to crime. Corrective and mechanical prevention
fits into this level.
2. Secondary Prevention – seeks early identification and intervention into the lives of individuals
or groups. It focuses on changing the behavior of those who are likely to become delinquent.
Punitive prevention fits into this level.
3. Tertiary Prevention – is aimed at preventing recidivism – that is, if focuses on preventing further
delinquent acts by youth directly identified as delinquent.

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Individual Views of Delinquency

Sociological Structure Theory

Strategies of Delinquency Prevention

Three Levels of Delinquency Prevention

1. Primary Prevention – is directed at modifying and changing crime-causing conditions in the

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