Topic

Juvenile Delinquency in my community

Statement of the problem

How has juvenile delinquency increased in my community? What is the level of action taken against it?

Method of Investigation

To express my views more efficiently I have decided to use a questionnaire has my method of investigation. A questionnaire will help me to know whether or not the views I had in mind about juvenile delinquency is exactly what the residents have in their minds.

Researched Topic

1. What are the main causes of juvenile delinquency in your area? 2. What roles dose the community play in reducing or preventing juvenile delinquency? 3. How have parents challenged the problem of juvenile delinquency?

Rationale

Not only in Jamaica but also all over the world, juvenile delinquency is a frequent issue. The causes and the way it is dealt with are considered importantly and so I took this time to express my views and level of concern on this topic.

Procedures used to collect Data

A total at 20 questionnaires were prepared to be handed out to the residents. One week before they were distributed, posters were placed in and around the community inviting resident to consult me for a simple interview, this interview was to ensure that the present person have an idea of the past history of the community including the knowledge of this specific social problems i.e., knowing the status of juvenile from the past to present. Of the persons who made consultations, 20 are recognized for qualification and given a questionnaire.

Cover letter

Trout hall district Frankfield P.O. Clarendon January 4, 2011 Dear Sir/Madam This is survey being carried out in Trout Hall in my community. To investigate the problem of Juvenile Delinquency in the community as a part of a School Based Assessment for a Social Studies course I am currently pursuing. You are advised to answer the following questions with total honesty. Since you are not required to write your name no one will know who answered what. The answers receive will be kept confidential and used only for this research. Thanks you for you kind cooperation. Yours sincerely Chris-Ann Cameron

Questionnaire

The level and extent of juvenile delinquency in my community, causes and concerns. Instructions: place a check in the box provided beside your most suitable answers. For specific data lines are provided. What gender are you? Male Female Cause What do you think is the most possible cause of juvenile delinquency in the community? Poor parental guidance Peer pressure Abuse Does parent and guardians play an active role in preventing children from being delinquent? Yes No Effect What effect does juvenile delinquency has on the communitys children? Positive Negative Other ________________________________________________________________________

 What are some of the risks juvenile delinquency imposes to the children who are delinquents in the community? Health risks Self esteem School disruption Solution What do you think is the most possible method of solution for juvenile delinquency in this community? Rehabilitation Counseling Organize more social events Which of the alternative named above do you think children will be most cooperative with? I. II. III. 1. How long have you been residing in the community? Over 10 years 6-10 years 1-5 years Under 1 year

2. Approximately what percentage of juvenile in your community do you think are delinquents? Over 25% but less than 50% Over 50% but less than 100% 25% or under 100% 3. Among what age groups is juvenile delinquency most popular in your in community? 10-15 years 13-17 years 12-17years 15-17 years Other_________________________________________________________________________ 4. Who do you think are to held account for delinquents in this area? Themselves Parents Other in the society Person in society 5. What is the level of parental intervention to delinquents displayed in this area? All parents of delinquents Some parents of delinquents Little or no parents of delinquent

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6. How does the parent of these delinquents do challenge their situation? Neglect abuse Seek help

7. What effect does the community have on these delinquents? Positive Negative Sometimes positive Sometimes negative 8. Does the effectiveness of the community on these children results in their delinquency? Yes No 9. What gender does juvenile delinquency mostly popular among in the community? Male Female 10. Do most these delinquents act in this way because of peer pressure? Yes No 11. Does the home influence children in being delinquent? Yes No

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12. What role does the society play in preventing children from becoming delinquent? Negative Formed recreational activities Annual treat

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Presentation and Explanation of Data

A total of 20 questionnaires were handed out to the residents. The 20 were handed out and returned 9% were female and 11% were male.

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Table 1 showing an approximate percentage of juvenile delinquency in this community.

No. of respondents 6 2 4 8

Responses Over 25 but less than 50 25 or under Over 50 but less than 100 100

Percentage 30% 10% 20% 40%

Table shows an approximate percentage of juvenile delinquency in this community. It can be seen in the above representation that 6 of the respondents which is equivalent to 30% says that over 25% but less than 50%, while 2 respondent which is equivalent to 10% which is the minority of the responses says 25% or under. 4 respondents which is equivalent to 20% choose over 50% but less than 100% and the majority which is the remaining 8 respondent equivalent to 40% choose 100%.

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Table 2 showing the level of parental intervention to delinquents displayed in the area.

No. of respondents 5 2 13

Responses All parents of delinquents Some parents of delinquents Little or no parents delinquent

Percentage 10% 25% 65%

The above table shows the level of parent intervention in the cases of juvenile delinquency 10% of respondents says all parents intervene in this problem. 25% thinks that only some parents intervenes in the problems however the majority of respondents which is 65% says little or no parental intervention occurs.

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Figure 3 pie chart showing how parents challenged the situation of Juvenile Delinquency.

5% 15%

55% 25%

KEY Neglet Abuse Help off their own Seek help

The above pie chart shows how parent challenged the situation of juvenile delinquency in the community. It shows the majority of respondents which is 55% saying that parents neglect their delinquent child or children, 20% abuse their children, 15% says that parents help off their own while the minority which is the remaining 5% says parents seek help.

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Figure 4 pie chart showing the effect the community has the delinquent children.

10%

20%

40%

KEY
Negative Sometimes negative 30% Sometimes positive Positive

The pie chart above represents the effect the community has on delinquent children. It can be seen that the majority of respondents which amounted to 40% says that it has a negative effect, 30% says that the community sometimes negative, 20% choose sometimes positive and the minority which is the remaining 10% says the community has a positive effect on delinquent children.

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Figure 5 bar graph showing the role the society play in preventing children from become delinquents.

45 40 35 30 25 20 15 Neglect 10 Form community clubs 5 0 Formed annual treats

It can been seen that the majority which is 40% say that the society neglects delinquents, while 35% says that the society forms community clubs, and the minority which is the remaining 25 says they formed annual treats.

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Interpretation of Data

The majority of respondent (55%) says that the community has a negative effect on its children. It is the negative effect of the community on its children which caused most of the children to be delinquents (75%). The government neglects the community and its children which could also result in a unanimous agreement by resident stating that approximately 100% of the children are delinquents. Also most parents neglect the situation of juvenile delinquency (55%) or little or no parents intervenes in this situation (65%) In fact the negligence of the society, parents and the community to the children will only makes more delinquents are worsen situation.

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Findings

The survey has revealed a number of effects that negligence (from the community, society and parents) to delinquency in juvenile has on the juvenile themselves. Some of these are outlined below. 1. There is little no intervention from society in juvenile delinquency in the area as indicated by 40% of the residents; as a result, parents neglect these children. Since intervention from the society would decrease the level of juvenile delinquency with the aid of parents. 2. The effect which the community displays is a negative one, the negative effect of the community result in a high level of juvenile delinquency this was according to 75% of the residents. According to the residents: parents, the community and the society does little or nothing to addressed juvenile delinquency or even to decrease its high level and as a result most if not all of the children in the community are delinquents.

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Recommendations

It is important that the children of all communities are being fairly and respectively treated. This is to ensure that they have some feeling of belonging and love. It is the role of the community, society and parents to socialized with children giving them love and attention in abundance, and displaying a good image for them to learn from. This is to ensure that children dont stray away from their family and the community in search for love and attention. This is important since upon their search they could be faced by many obstacles which will have a negative effect on their future to come. Socializing with children is important also since through this process they will learn the positive and negative sides of life. With proper socialization children should learn to abstain from negative activities. Displaying a good image for children to follow is also very important since children live what they learn. This means that as they grew gradually the events that they are exposed to will influence their behavior or even their way of life. This problem can be solved by the following measures: Organizing Recreational Facilities to occupy the communitys children whenever school is not in session. Organize annual treats /events which will entertain the children in the community. Form clubs and invite the children to be a part of the club activities. These clubs should help to build on their self esteem. (With the aid of church halls etc.). Organize community centers to facilitate for activities.

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These measures should be carefully taken by the parent of children in the community, other person in the community and the government from an early stage of childhood to prevent this problem from occurring at teenage level.

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