Theories of juvenile deliquency - Assignment Example

Juvenile Delinquency Theories One theory on the causes of juvenile delinquency is Robert Merton’s “Social Strain Theory”. Merton suggests in his theory that crimes or any other antisocial behavior committed or exhibited by the youth is caused by their inability to achieve specific goals or dreams such as wealth, status, and employment, usually due to the lack of financial resources (Kartha, 2010). The broken piggy bank on the left suggests the idea that the individual is running out of funds.

This may be a cause of juvenile delinquency. Youths, in the adolescent stage, normally belong to some peer group. Most of these cliques reveal encounters with the ills of peer pressure. In order to belong, youths have the ideology that they have to be rich and famous. Economically underprivileged adolescents may be pressured to obtain money in unlawful ways, such as stealing and the like. The thinking of the youth today must be transformed and they should be made aware that they have to be critical in choosing their peers.

Another theory is that of Albert Bandura. His theory is known as the “Social Learning Theory”. Bandura points to the environment as the cause of possible criminal acts committed by the youth. He reasoned that the adolescent observes his environment and tries to imitate what he sees. In this specific theory, family, peers, and media can directly influence the behavior of the youth (Kartha, 2010). The picture on the right suggests the effect of media on today’s youth. Juveniles are usually in want of entertainment and their common sources of this are the television and the internet.

Viewing shows that can either directly or indirectly promote violence can affect the mind of the viewing minor. Without authoritative parental guidance, he might be led to thinking that what he views is acceptable by society. To reduce cases of juvenile delinquency, parents are compelled to monitor the shows and websites their children see. Also, the media board is entreated to uphold strict compliance of their by-laws to ensure that the youth will have access to more beneficial tv productions and website contents.

Reference: Kartha, D. (2010, June 14). Juvenile Delinquency. Buzzle.com®. Retrieved July 14, 2011 from http://www.buzzle.com/articles/juvenile-delinquency.html