Juvenile Delinquency has been a declining problem in Canada since it’s peak in the 1990s (Allen and Superle, 2014). As of 2014, the crime rate was of 4,322 per 100,000 youth, amounting to 101,000 youth (ages 12 to 17) accused of Criminal Code violations in 2014 (Allen and Superle, 2014). However, they mostly consisted of relatively minor offences, the most frequent—criminal—offences were theft of $5,000 and under, mischief, and common assault (Allen and Superle, 2014). Scouting is the solution to juvenile delinquency that will be studied in this essay. In a study funded by the Boy Scouts of America (BSA), it was found that “three-fourths of youth who are or have been in scouting say Scouting teaches them to always be honest” (Harris Interactive,
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The argument is that exposure to the preceding factors can aid to curb, and prevent, juvenile delinquency. In order to properly measure juvenile delinquency, risk and protective factors are used—this paper is largely based on the protective and risk factors defined by Michael Shader’s overview for the United States Government. As explained on page 2 of his overview, risk factors are “characteristics, variables, or hazards” that can lead to delinquency; these are contrasted with protective factors which serve to moderate risk factors and lessen their potential effect (Shader, p. 4). Some examples of risk factors include: poverty, poor parent-child relationships, a broken home, abusive parents, neglect, low parental involvement, antisocial and abusive parents, being male, and family conflict (Shader, p. 4). Some protective factors include: a high IQ, being female, parental monitoring, commitment to school, recognition for involvement in conventional activities, friends who engage in conventional behaviour, and warm, supportive relationships with parents or other adults (Shader, p. 4); scouting has the potential to offer several of the above protective …show more content…
As such, the disciplines of psychology and sociology are used to advance arguments in favour of youth development programs. Most notably, Social Learning Theory—of the discipline of psychology—is used so as to support that youth will mirror both older scouts and their scout leaders’ behaviour. This will be then be related to the community concept of psychology—youth can relate to the scouting community. Additionally, it will relate to the concept of reinforcement—by being rewarded for good behaviour and following the scout law, juvenile behaviour could potentially be disincentivized and restrained. Connecting the discipline of sociology, most prominent is the Labeling Theory which argues that being labeled as a deviant leads to further deviant behaviour. This supports the argument that the neutral, supportive scouting environment may curb delinquent behaviour. For example, instead of being labeled as deviants, juvenile youth experience kindness, positive peers, and a large supportive community. This will then further relate to the stereotyping
The argument is that exposure to the preceding factors can aid to curb, and prevent, juvenile delinquency. In order to properly measure juvenile delinquency, risk and protective factors are used—this paper is largely based on the protective and risk factors defined by Michael Shader’s overview for the United States Government. As explained on page 2 of his overview, risk factors are “characteristics, variables, or hazards” that can lead to delinquency; these are contrasted with protective factors which serve to moderate risk factors and lessen their potential effect (Shader, p. 4). Some examples of risk factors include: poverty, poor parent-child relationships, a broken home, abusive parents, neglect, low parental involvement, antisocial and abusive parents, being male, and family conflict (Shader, p. 4). Some protective factors include: a high IQ, being female, parental monitoring, commitment to school, recognition for involvement in conventional activities, friends who engage in conventional behaviour, and warm, supportive relationships with parents or other adults (Shader, p. 4); scouting has the potential to offer several of the above protective …show more content…
As such, the disciplines of psychology and sociology are used to advance arguments in favour of youth development programs. Most notably, Social Learning Theory—of the discipline of psychology—is used so as to support that youth will mirror both older scouts and their scout leaders’ behaviour. This will be then be related to the community concept of psychology—youth can relate to the scouting community. Additionally, it will relate to the concept of reinforcement—by being rewarded for good behaviour and following the scout law, juvenile behaviour could potentially be disincentivized and restrained. Connecting the discipline of sociology, most prominent is the Labeling Theory which argues that being labeled as a deviant leads to further deviant behaviour. This supports the argument that the neutral, supportive scouting environment may curb delinquent behaviour. For example, instead of being labeled as deviants, juvenile youth experience kindness, positive peers, and a large supportive community. This will then further relate to the stereotyping