NCJ Number
89360
Journal
Revue internationale de criminologie et de police technique Volume: 35 Issue: 2 Dated: (April-June 1982) Pages: 119-146
Date Published
1982
Length
28 pages
Annotation
Juvenile delinquency is a global phenomenon which must be confronted by national social policy and local government services. Conditions in Japan, Switzerland, and the United States exemplify different gradations of the problem.
Abstract
This article cites definitions of juvenile delinquency from the legal codes of various countries and assesses the characteristics of juvenile criminality in general. The delinquency factors considered include sex distinctions, social class differences between the delinquency of the poor and the well-to-do, effects of urbanization, and demographic statistics on delinquency over the past 3 decades. Other issues raised are influence of the family, delinquency prediction and prevention, and social change. Japanese and U.S. social conditions, law enforcement and justice processing practices, as well as preventive programs are compared in light of the fact that delinquency in Japan is relatively low and stable, while continuing to increase in America. Switzerland is assessed as a case between the two extremes. Due to the progressive disintegration of traditional social controls, national policies must promote decentralized, local provision of preventive services. A total of 39 references are given.