Topic selection and research considerations

Juvenile Delinquency

The phenomenon of juvenile delinquency in this country is alarming. The breadth of crimes committed by youth offenders runs the gamut of drug violations to sexual offenses and violent criminal behavior. Males drive the crime rate and juveniles are more likely to be caught and arrested than their adult counterparts.

Research abounds on all aspects of the problem from gang presence to a link between lead poisoning and violent behavior. However, it is my contention that a direct link can be drawn between children who are born and raised in poverty and their propensity to involve themselves in illegal activities including the use of drugs and violence.

A review of the literature is expected to reveal that there have been previous attempts to discern the impact of poverty on expected juvenile delinquency. Unfortunately, because the issue is so complicated researchers often tend to point to poverty as a single causal factor in a litany of other problems. For instance, one study suggests that there are a number of risk factors that can result in the antisocial behavior of children including poverty but also such things as peer pressure and family support systems (Loeber, 1990).

A second study supports the premise that a variety of causal factors are at play in the existence of juvenile delinquency and the eradication of it is not guaranteed anytime in the future. This researcher suggests that the problem may be neurological and may stem from environmental factors too complicated to address with a single solution (Lewis, 2009). Moreover, she presents a convincing argument for the existence of a relationship between abuse (both vertbal and nonverbal) and the acting out of a child through delinquency.

Finally, for the purposes of this research proposal we will refer to a third study that suggests education could be at the heart of reducing juvenile delinquency statistics but the conditions in which the child is raised impacts their ability to choose between right and wrong (Hindelang, 1981).

Method and design