The Relation Between Abuse Neglect And Delinquency

Essay, Research Paper

The Relation between Abuse, Neglect

And

Delinquency

ABSTRACT

This research paper is to make known the problems of maltreatment, and the affects the individual is made to deal with. This needs to be taken into account when there is a delinquent act performed. This is not an excuse that should be used for all delinquent acts though. Parents need to realize, they brought this child into the world and now it is there duty to raise them with proper values and morals. The child needs to be looked after, making sure there is no unnecessary harm being done to him/her.

I believe that maltreatment does influence an adolescent in becoming a delinquent. The individual learns that this is acceptable behavior from the people that have the most influence in their lives. Once they realize that this is not a tolerated behavior they tend to act out in all sorts of forms, upon themselves and others. They now hold no fear in defying society.

I am gathering some of my data from my own experiences (and others soon to follow) from the Perkins School (Lancaster). This school is a home for the time being for abused children and adolescents. They try to teach the individuals how society works and what is accepted and behavior adjustments. This school does not try to cure them, but to help them understand and deal with their difficulties. The remaining part of my research came from journal articles and books.

In my findings, I am implying that maltreatment affects a child a great deal, most likely for a severe amount of one’s life. The emotions that are built up in the child are going to cause outbursts of anger, confusion, anxiety, hostility and distrust. Depending upon the intensity and the length the maltreatment occurs for assists in explaining the consequences the individual may portray due to the maltreatment.

INTRODUCTION

Do forms of abuse and neglect within the family bring about delinquency among the youth. Presumably, yes, maltreatment does have an influence upon delinquent behaviors. “Maltreatment is referred to as the parental behaviors that are considered acts intended to inflict physical or psychological harm and that reflect a lack of concern for the adolescent’s well-being, sense of self, and social competence.” (Brezina, Timothy) Maltreatment causes neurological damage, deficits in cognitive socioemotional functioning, and learning of antisocial problem solving and failure in school.

Depending upon the severity and length of time of the maltreatment put onto the child determines the level of violent behavior put forth by the juvenile. Severe physical, psychological, and neurological consequences can come about because of maltreatment. These consequences may impair the child’s ability to socially integrate in various ways. Within the last ten years studies have found strong associations between inadequate parental nurture, harsh or erratic discipline, and delinquent or violent behavior in childhood and adolescence. This does not mean that all delinquents were abused or neglected. Some come from what appear to be model homes.

I chose this topic because of a few reasons. Recently I started working at the Perkins School, which is a residential program for abused (physically, sexually, and mentally) children. These children can no longer live with their family in the home. Some of the children do not even have people to call family or a place to call home, except Perkins. Every one of these children have behavioral problems, some more severe than others, due to the trauma they have been through. Seeing how defenseless these children were/are to the abuse and how much it affects their behavior is mind boggling.

Today’s society seems out to punish the delinquents for their behavior. But does society look at the whole picture. Life at home, their morals and values learned through their parents should also be examined as well. Children are like clay, what is molded and pounded into them hardens and is that way until it is melted and restructured. People need to take into consideration how they were raised and what was taught to them their whole life. Yet, there are exceptions to this. Some children just have problems brought about on their own.

LITERATURE REVIEW

The article “Adolescent Maltreatment and Delinquency: The Question of Intervening Processes” in the ‘Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency’ brings out competing expectations for the maltreatment-delinquency association in delinquents through the use of data from a national survey. The three criminological theories: social control theory, social learning theory, and social-psychological strain theory help in accounting for this relationship. The findings discuss the need for a more general and complex understanding of the adolescent maltreatment-delinquency relationship.

The quality of parent-child interactions holds significance in this study. Negative treatment toward the adolescent in the form of rejection and unjust punishment is positively related to the delinquent behavior. The forms of maltreatment that are associated with problem behavior are not limited to the extreme forms of physical abuse. Psychological assaults may be more damaging to adolescents in their social development. Names and threats actually hurt more than ’sticks and stones’.

This artic

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