Officers Working with Juveniles
Juveniles are individuals who have not reached adulthood, they are still considered to be children. For that reason, officers who work with juveniles need different skills than the ones used for an adult, to approach them. This paper will discuss the skills and characteristics needed as an officer when working with juveniles, why officers need to possess skills that differ from officers who work with adults, and would an officer who has worked 20 or more years with adults successfully transition into becoming a successful juvenile officer.
Characteristics an officer needs are a desire to work with juveniles as well as an aptitude for the work are considered essential for the job. (Larry J. Siegel, 2014)The skills …show more content…
Juveniles are harder to control than adults because brute force cannot be used on them. It is limited the amount of ways an officer can react to an out-of-control teen. Which can make it harder for an officer. An officer’s actions in cases involving adults are controlled by the law and their own judgment or discretion. While a case where a juvenile is involved the officer needs to consider what is best for the teen and how his actions will influence the teen in the future (Larry J. Siegel, 2014). In adult prisons there are hardened prisoner that need to be dealt with, while in a juvenile facility, keeping bad influences out is what is dealt with. According to a scholarly journal titled “The correctional experiences of youth in adult and juvenile prisons”, an administrator at a juvenile correctional center said that when hiring staff, they look for “First thing-are they able to relate to kids? A lot of people think it's solely a correctional facility, and it's not. This is in the juvenile setting, and they're charged with providing treatment, not just confinement. I look for someone with kid skills, someone who can be a good role model...” (Kupchik, 2007). Meaning that officers who want to work with juveniles are recommended to have some type of experience with juveniles because it is not the same as dealing with adults. They have to be supportive and be mentor-like because juvenile prisons focus on interaction and rehabilitative aspects that are not really seen in adult correctional facilities. Officers have to deal with the period of adolescence that is filled with anxiety, confusion, fear, self-doubt, anger, and sexual identity. (Richard,
Juveniles are individuals who have not reached adulthood, they are still considered to be children. For that reason, officers who work with juveniles need different skills than the ones used for an adult, to approach them. This paper will discuss the skills and characteristics needed as an officer when working with juveniles, why officers need to possess skills that differ from officers who work with adults, and would an officer who has worked 20 or more years with adults successfully transition into becoming a successful juvenile officer.
Characteristics an officer needs are a desire to work with juveniles as well as an aptitude for the work are considered essential for the job. (Larry J. Siegel, 2014)The skills …show more content…
Juveniles are harder to control than adults because brute force cannot be used on them. It is limited the amount of ways an officer can react to an out-of-control teen. Which can make it harder for an officer. An officer’s actions in cases involving adults are controlled by the law and their own judgment or discretion. While a case where a juvenile is involved the officer needs to consider what is best for the teen and how his actions will influence the teen in the future (Larry J. Siegel, 2014). In adult prisons there are hardened prisoner that need to be dealt with, while in a juvenile facility, keeping bad influences out is what is dealt with. According to a scholarly journal titled “The correctional experiences of youth in adult and juvenile prisons”, an administrator at a juvenile correctional center said that when hiring staff, they look for “First thing-are they able to relate to kids? A lot of people think it's solely a correctional facility, and it's not. This is in the juvenile setting, and they're charged with providing treatment, not just confinement. I look for someone with kid skills, someone who can be a good role model...” (Kupchik, 2007). Meaning that officers who want to work with juveniles are recommended to have some type of experience with juveniles because it is not the same as dealing with adults. They have to be supportive and be mentor-like because juvenile prisons focus on interaction and rehabilitative aspects that are not really seen in adult correctional facilities. Officers have to deal with the period of adolescence that is filled with anxiety, confusion, fear, self-doubt, anger, and sexual identity. (Richard,