Transition and Contributing Factors for Juvenile Delinquency and Adult Criminality

1. Introduction
· Problem Statement
Last year, America’s largest cities, according to Major Cities Chiefs Association, experienced significant increase in violent crime (Major Cities Chiefs Association, 2017). It is important to note that this was the second year in a row that the said cities had to contend with rising crime rates. While most of those arrested in the U.S. for crimes ranging from homicide to aggravated assault to robbery were adults, juvenile violent crime arrests have also risen substantially, with most juvenile delinquents continuing their criminal behaviors well into adulthood. There is need for a closer look into how juvenile offenders who transition to adult offenders are contributing towards higher crime rates in our cities. Some of the contemporary approaches to the war against crime could include the implementation of early interventions to ensure that young delinquents do not graduate to become adult criminals.
· Purpose and Significance of the Study
Juvenile crime and its influencers remains one of the most studied topics in criminology. Further, research studies have indicated that most juvenile offenders often graduate into adult criminality – effectively feeding a vicious loop of heightened crime rates (National Institute of Justice – NIJ, 2017). Little research has, however, been conducted on what exactly informs or feeds this particular transition. This effectively means that there is a deficiency in well-researched intervention mechanisms to ensure that juvenile offenders do not continue the life of crime on attaining the age of the majority. A study of this nature is, therefore, not only timely but also necessary. The impact juvenile crime has on the entire society; from schools to families, to victims and even the tax payers, is significant (Loeber and Farrington, 2012). The cost to society becomes even greater when criminal tendencies from youth are carried forward to adulthood. The issue, therefore, should not only be the termination of delinquent behavior, but most importantly, understanding the nature of transition from juvenile offending to adult offending and the factors at play. In addition to identifying the nature and extent of the relationship between juvenile delinquency and adult criminality, the present study will focus on the transition from juvenile delinquency to adult criminality, with an aim of identifying the key influencers that facilitate the said transition. To rein in criminal activities in major U.S. cities, there is a need to approach the criminal mind holistically; from its constitution to its development and nurture.
· Conceptual Framework
Juvenile delinquency, in basic terms, “is defined as the violation of the law of the United States committed by a person prior to his eighteenth birthday that would have been a crime if committed by an adult” (Reynolds and Fletcher-Janzen, 2014, p. 548). It, therefore, follows that an adult offender is anybody is above age 18 and who, for all intents and purposes, commits a crime or is found to have violated any law of the United States. In most states, age 18 marks the adolescence to adulthood legal transition age. Most researchers, however, query this transition age – arguing that at 18 years, the human brain may not be “fully mature” (NIJ, 2017). For purposes of this study, the definition of adult offender highlighted above will be adopted.
In the past, punishment for the commission of crime was severe – regardless of whether the crime was committed by an adult or a 12 year old. According to Sharma and Sharma (2006), “as psychologists proceed to draw the attention of the civilized world to the cause of juvenile delinquency, the tradition of punishing children lost favor, to be replaced by efforts at improving and rehabilitating them” (p. 376). It is for this reason that most jurisdictions are adopting a rehabilitative stance against juvenile delinquents, as opposed to instinctive modes of punishment. These efforts, as the authors further point out are aimed at ensuring that the young offender leaves his criminal ways and becomes a responsible and law abiding citizen. A study conducted by the Pittsburgh Youth Study, however, “found that 52 to 57 percent of juvenile delinquents continue to offend up to age 25…” with this percentage dropping to “to 16 to 19 percent” by the time they hit age 30 (NIJ, 2017). The present study will examine this transition with an aim of defining the circumstances that lead to the continuity from juvenile to adult offending.
· Research Questions
The present study will seek to answer the following overarching research question:
· What are the main factors that inform the transition from juvenile offending to adult offending?
The secondary research questions for the present study will be:
a) Are the current structural or systematic solutions towards the rehabilitation of juvenile offenders effective in preventing the transition from juvenile offending to adult criminality?
b) Are there specific errors that have been made in the design and implementation of juvenile offender rehabilitation programs to render them ineffective?
c) Which specific social factors increase the likelihood of juvenile offenders continuing into adult criminality?
2. Literature review
Rhoades, Leve, Eddy, and Chamberlain (2016) point out that while most juvenile offenders elect to leave their criminal ways behind as they turn 18, there are those who persist and ultimately find themselves in adult correction systems. The fact that, as per the findings of the Pittsburgh Youth Study, “52 to 57 percent of juvenile delinquents continue to offend to age 25”, is in itself an indication that the various intervention mechanisms that have been implemented in seeking to curb juvenile delinquency have been ineffective. Some of the juvenile delinquency prevention/intervention programs and approaches that have been adopted in the past and continue to be implemented today include, but they are not limited to, educating parents on how to prevent juvenile delinquency, adopting programs aimed at occupying young people so as to keep them from criminal activities (i.e. recreational facilities), rehabilitation of delinquents within the juvenile justice system (i.e. by committing youths to correctional youth facilities), etc. In essence, as currently constituted/structured, some of these interventions contribute towards a higher rate of transition from juvenile offending to adult offending. Howell (2009) argues that juvenile delinquency centers contribute to increased likelihood of adult criminality. According to the author, the rate of incarceration during adulthood is higher for boys who find themselves in juvenile delinquency center at some point of their youth. This is in comparison to young offenders who, for one reason or another, avoid juvenile delinquency centers. This, the author attributes to the creation of what he refers to as a ‘culture of deviance,’ whereby instead of being reformed, those who visit juvenile delinquency centers become more hardened and learn new tricks (Howell, 2009). Understanding the root cause of the significant percentage of delinquents who transition from juvenile delinquency to adult criminality could help mend some of the interventions in place today – so as to make them more effective in not only the prevention of juvenile delinquency, but also in the prevention of adult criminality. In the long term, this will be the most appropriate move as we seek to ensure that we rein in the increasing crime rates in most of our cities.
In addition to juvenile delinquency centers, other considerations that ought to be evaluated include how age, violence, and nature of crime contribute towards continued criminal behavior into adulthood. According to NIJ (2017), juvenile offenders who start to exhibit criminal behavior at an early age are more likely to continue their offending into adulthood. Also, as the agency further points out, the more violent a juvenile is, the higher his chances of continuing criminality into adulthood. It is also important to note that persistence or continuity is also impacted upon by the kind/type of offence. Some studies, according to NIJ (2017) have demonstrated “that drug dealing and possession of weapons had the highest likelihood of duration and persistence into early adulthood, while gang membership had a shorter duration.”
One of the better known and more audacious approaches towards ensuring that juvenile offenders do not transition into adult offending is the ‘Scared Straight’ project. According to Logan (2008), delinquent youths were bought into close contact with adult prisoners for a sneak insight into how life in incarceration was like, and while here, they were exposed to the hostile prison conditions. In essence, the intention of the program was to scare offenders into ceasing their criminal activities, particularly as they became adults. The program was, however, largely unsuccessful. As a matter of fact, the program had unintended consequences. In the words of Logan (2008), “the juveniles who participated in the program actually did worse than a comparison group not exposed to the program.” One of the explanations that have been floated for the said failure has got to do with the fact that the program fails to take to account the background of candidates selected for participation into the same. With some of the juveniles coming from dangerous communities, aggression and violence (such as the one they encountered in prison) was the order of the day. This is yet another indication of the systemic failure that has informed the high rate of transition from juvenile offending to adult offending.
3. Biblical World View
The relevance of the youth as far as our country’s future prosperity is concerned cannot be overstated. Effectively, they are the country’s next generation. One very effective, but often ignored approach to influencing young people to live upright lives is instilling in them the fear of God. God fearing young people are likely to adopt morals and behaviors that are in conformity with upright living and, hence, avoid a life of crime not only during their youth, but also in their adulthood. It is important to note that on this front, parents and guardians carry the greatest burden of responsibility. As a matter of fact, Proverbs 22:6 points out that “start children off on the way they should go; and even when they are old they will not turn from it” (The New King James Version).
4. Research Method
The research will adopt a qualitative research approach. In adopting this particular research approach, I will be seeking to develop a more detailed perspective of the transition from juvenile delinquency to adult offending, and the reason as to why juvenile offenders continue to offend past age 18. According to Houser (1998), qualitative researcher permits the researcher to explore the issue of interest in greater detail. This study calls for enhanced understanding of why individuals act or behave in a certain way. Given that qualitative research mimics/replicates the individual experiences of persons, its relevance in a research of this nature cannot be overstated. It should, however be noted that with qualitative research, I may not be able to generalize the results I come up with to a larger population. This is what Houser (1998) refers to as loss of the broader perspective – a key disadvantage of qualitative approaches.


















References
Houser, R. (1998). Counseling and Educational Research: Evaluation and Application. Thousand Oaks: SAGE
Howell, J.C. (2009). Preventing and Reducing Juvenile Delinquency: A Comprehensive Framework (2nd ed.). Washington, DC: SAGE
Logan, J.S. (2008). Good Punishment: Christian Moral Practice and U.S. Imprisonment. Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company
Loeber, R. & Farrington, D.P. (Eds.). (2012). From Juvenile Delinquency to Adult Crime: Criminal Careers, Justice Policy and Prevention. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
Major Cities Chiefs Association. (2017). Violent Crime Survey – Totals: Midyear Comparison between 2016 and 2015. Retrieved from https://www.majorcitieschiefs.com/pdf/news/mcca_violent_crime_data_midyear_20162015.pdf
National Institute of Justice – NIJ. (2017). From Juvenile Delinquency to Young Adult Offending. Retrieved from https://www.nij.gov/topics/crime/Pages/delinquency-to-adult-offending.aspx
Reynolds, C.R. & Fletcher-Janzen, E. (Eds.). (2004). Concise Encyclopedia of Special Education: A Reference for the Education of the Handicapped and Other Exceptional Children and Adults (3rd ed.). Hoboken, NJ: John Willey & Sons.
Rhoades, K.A., Leve, L.D., Eddy, J.M. & Chamberlain, P. (2016). Predicting the Transition from Juvenile Delinquency to Adult Criminality: Gender-Specific Influences in Two High-Risk Samples. Criminal Behav. Ment. Health, 26 (5), 336-351.
Sharma, R.N. & Sharma, R.K. (2006). Advanced Education Psychology. New Delhi: Atlantic Publishers & Dist.
Shoemaker, D.J. (2013). Juvenile Delinquency (2nd ed.). New York, NY: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, INC.