Juveniles in jeopardy

Abstract

Adolescence is defined as a transitional period (Hurlock, 1980) where what happened during childhood leaves a significant mark on one’s life and future. This includes emotional and physical difficulties and pressures, and involvement in anti-social activities including crime (Newburn, 1997). Criminal behaviour is perceived to be one of “a larger syndrome of anti-social behaviour” arising in childhood and at times persisting in adulthood (Farrington, 1997, p. 363). For most juveniles, according to Moffitt (1993, p. 674) activities tend to be temporary and situational whilst for a small minority this is “stable and persistent”. Moffitt (1993, p. 682) claims that if a child “steps off on the wrong foot” and remains on this unconventional path, the consequences may be perpetuated by persistent offending. In such a situation, it is difficult to make up for lost opportunities in acquiring conventional skills such as academic skills. The underlying risk factors that render one susceptible to antisocial behaviour when young are carried into adulthood. Together with the accumulating problems, the options for change and the possibility of resorting to conventional methods are limited (Moffitt, 1993). The consequences following one’s antisocial behaviour may narrow opportunities for change. This can be compounded by the resulting labelling that could play a significant role as once a bad reputation is gained the opportunities for conventional behaviour is narrowed further. On the other hand, youths who manifest early onset conduct problems could follow two paths; their conduct problems could be restricted to their childhood years or else these conduct problems persist (Barker and Maughan, 2009; Moffitt, Areseneault, Jaffee, Kim-Cohen, Koenen, Odgers et al. 2008).