INFLUENCES ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF VIOLENT BEHAVIORS WITHIN JUVENILE DELINQUENTS

Influences on the Development of Violent Behaviors within Juvenile Delinquents



Influences on the Development of Violent Behaviors within Juvenile Delinquents

Introduction

Juvenile delinquency is a collective term used to refer to all youngsters who participate in crimes, acts of violence or antisocial behavior. The usage of the term is restricted to youngsters who have not reached adulthood or attained the majority age of 21 years (Hodgins, 2007). There are tendencies of the youngsters in teenage group to engage in acts of violence and aggression and other antisocial behavior. A number of factors are responsible for increasing the level of violence in juvenile delinquents. The factors formulated to explain the increased level of violence in juvenile delinquents are biological and environmental factors (Shannon, 2005).

There is a general agreement that biological factors such as genetics play a role in development of juvenile delinquency and they predispose some juveniles to acts of crime and aggression. On the other hand, environmental factors provide a room for the thriving of juvenile delinquency. Juvenile delinquency manifests through aggression and violence to objects, self or other people, and this violence can be manifested through physical or verbal means. This paper supports the assertion that interplay of biological factors is responsible for the development of violent behaviors in juveniles.

Juvenile Delinquency and Aggression

According to (Raikkonen, Mathews, & Salomon, 2003), the understanding of the causes of juvenile delinquency and violence is critical in addressing the problem because it offers the necessary foundation for designing intervention and prevention programs. Although there are many factors responsible for causing increased levels of violence to juvenile delinquents, research done over the years has revealed the critical role played by biological factors in aggression and juvenile delinquency. The biological factors that influence violent behaviors are largely genetic and include certain chemicals in the body like neurotransmitters and hormones. Each of these genetic factors has their own mechanism of exacerbating the level of violence in juvenile delinquents.

The substantial prevalence of aggression and victimization is especially alarming when one considers the serious negative consequences of each. Aggressive children are often disliked by their normative (non-aggressive) peers and affiliate with delinquent peers who may solidify and expand the child's antisocial tendencies (Card, 2006). Aggressive children are also often disengaged from school, either by their own choice or through negative teacher reactions, suspensions, and expulsions. These negative consequences of childhood are often exacerbated over time, leading to further delinquency, substance use, and school dropout during adolescence and to criminal behavior, poor marital relations, and unemployment/underemployment during adulthood (Hodges, 1999). Of course, these associations are not perfect, and most aggressive children will discontinue, or at least decrease, their use of aggression with time and lead normal, well-adapted lives (in fact, there is evidence that most early adolescents will engage in some antisocial behavior, generally with few long-term consequences). At the same time, these long-term associations suggest that childhood aggression places individuals at increased risk for negative trajectories, and such behavior should certainly ...