When society thinks of juveniles, the first thing that comes to mind is a child. Rarely do our minds first think of juvenile delinquency; many people do not even know what the true definition entails. Juvenile delinquency is defined as an act committed by a person under the age of 18 that violates the laws where the act is committed. The act of juvenile delinquency slightly differs from the adult system. In the juvenile justice court system, status offenses are offenses only considered chargeable when committed by a minor, but they cannot be charged as an adult. Most juveniles commonly commit status offenses which are acts that can be considered problematic for juveniles but not for adults. For example, running away from home or dropping
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He thought that other criminologists were focusing too much on street crimes and people of the lower class. Southerland created his own personal theory called differential association. Although he focused on while collar crimes, his theory is often used to describe juvenile delinquency. Differential association theory is a micro-level theory, which means these types of theories focus on individual delinquency rather than what effect society has on people. Differential association theory is the learning of behaviors from people we interact with, such as peers, friends, and family. Sutherland proposed nine different propositions in which why people commit crimes. Even though he geared the propositions towards adult crime, they can also be applied to juvenile …show more content…
Children are taught how to commit a robbery, what tools to use, what to say, and what the reasoning is behind robbing someone. For example, let’s say that a child observes that when his father leaves the house for the day he grabs a large, dark jacket, a ski mask, and a gun. When the father returns home, the child notices that his father has brought home with him expensive jewelry and a lot of cash. If the father does this often, the child will start to catch on. Once the child gets older he will probably eventually over hear his father talking about how he robbed someone, what he said, and what he got out of the robbery. Sometimes the minor does not have to be told up front how to rob someone, but can learn how to just based on his or her observations. “Just because the adolescent is exposed to this type of learning does not necessarily mean the child will become a criminal. Differential association does suggest, however, that the risk of criminal behavior may increase as a result of the exposure.” If the child is learning step by step what is going on while his father is out on a robbery, then the chances that he will follow in his father’s footsteps is increased according to
He thought that other criminologists were focusing too much on street crimes and people of the lower class. Southerland created his own personal theory called differential association. Although he focused on while collar crimes, his theory is often used to describe juvenile delinquency. Differential association theory is a micro-level theory, which means these types of theories focus on individual delinquency rather than what effect society has on people. Differential association theory is the learning of behaviors from people we interact with, such as peers, friends, and family. Sutherland proposed nine different propositions in which why people commit crimes. Even though he geared the propositions towards adult crime, they can also be applied to juvenile …show more content…
Children are taught how to commit a robbery, what tools to use, what to say, and what the reasoning is behind robbing someone. For example, let’s say that a child observes that when his father leaves the house for the day he grabs a large, dark jacket, a ski mask, and a gun. When the father returns home, the child notices that his father has brought home with him expensive jewelry and a lot of cash. If the father does this often, the child will start to catch on. Once the child gets older he will probably eventually over hear his father talking about how he robbed someone, what he said, and what he got out of the robbery. Sometimes the minor does not have to be told up front how to rob someone, but can learn how to just based on his or her observations. “Just because the adolescent is exposed to this type of learning does not necessarily mean the child will become a criminal. Differential association does suggest, however, that the risk of criminal behavior may increase as a result of the exposure.” If the child is learning step by step what is going on while his father is out on a robbery, then the chances that he will follow in his father’s footsteps is increased according to