THEORETICAL AND EMPIRICAL CONTRIBUTIONS TO DELINQUENCY RESEARCH - REVISED EDITION

• NCJ Number: 57865
• Author(s): K HARTMANN
• Date Published: 1977
• Length: 192 pages
• Corporate Author: Springer-Verlag
• Publication Format: Book (Hardbound)
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: German
• Country: West Germany (Former)

Annotation

THEORIES AND EMPIRICAL STUDIES ON JUVENILE DELINQUENCY ARE REVIEWED.

Abstract

THREE THEORETICAL ASPECTS OF JUVENILE DELINQUENCY ARE COVERED. THE FIRST IS PHENOMENOLOGY (I.E., ETYMOLOGICAL, LEGAL, AND PSYCHOPATHOLOGICAL DEFINITIONS), WHICH INCLUDES A STUDY SHOWING THE INTERRELATIONSHIP OF PERSONALITY CHARACTERISTICS, EARLY INFLUENCES SUCH AS SOCIALIZATION DISTURBANCES, AND CRIME. THE SECOND, ETIOLOGY, DEALS WITH PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES (EFFECTS OF CONFLICTS, OF LACK OF GUIDANCE, OF PARENTAL NEGLECT), SOCIOLOGICAL THEORIES (THE INFLUENCE OF NEGATIVE ROLE MODELS, OF AN UNFAVORABLE ENVIRONMENT, OF LABELING), AND BIOLOGICAL THEORIES (THE INFLUENCE OF BRAIN DAMAGE, OF DEVELOPMENTAL DISTURBANCES, OF CHROMOSOME ABERRATIONS, AND OF SEX, AGE, CONSTITUTION, AND HEREDITY). THE THIRD HAS TO DO WITH TERMINOLOGY--I.E., TERMINOLOGICAL DIFFERENCES BETWEEN SUCH CONCEPTS AS DELINQUENCY, CRIMINALITY, SOCIAL REJECTION, AND ABNORMALITY--AS WELL AS WITH CONNECTIONS OF JUVENILE CRIME TO ILLNESS, PSYCHOPATHY, AND NEUROSES. EMPIRICAL CONTRIBUTIONS RELATE TO METHODS BY WHICH DELINQUENCY IS MEASURED, QUANTIFIED, AND PREDICTED AND TO RESULTS OF A STUDY OF 1,059 JUVENILE DELINQUENTS WITH AN AVERAGE AGE OF 16. THIS STUDY TOOK PLACE IN WEST BERLIN FROM 1962 TO 1964 AND REVEALED SUCH CHARACTERISTICS AS SEVERE FAMILY DISTURBANCES, PHYSICAL NORMALITY, POOR INTELLECTUAL AND ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE, PREVIOUS TROUBLE WITH THE LAW, NEGLECT OF SCHOOL AND WORK, DEPRESSION, INADEQUATE SOCIAL CONTACTS, ALCOHOL ABUSE, AND LACK OF RESISTANCE TO TEMPTATION. A FINAL REPRESENTATION SKETCHES THE TYPICAL DELINQUENT, IN TERMS OF BACKGROUND AND CHARACTERISTICS. TREATMENT FORMS DISCUSSED INCLUDE PROVISION OF INFORMATION, PSYCHOANALYSIS, BEHAVIORAL MODIFICATION, CATHARSIS (E.G., PSYCHODRAMA), DISCUSSION, PSYCHOTHERAPY, EDUCATION IN RELIGIOUS AND POLITICAL PERSPECTIVES, AND GROUP THERAPY. FUNCTIONS OF AN EXPERT CONSULTANT IN TREATMENT, OF INSTITUTIONAL TREATMENT, AND OF PSYCHOANALYSIS ARE OUTLINED. A SUMMARY OF CONCEPTUAL CONTROVERSIES, TABLES AND GRAPHS, AND AN EXTENSIVE BIBLIOGRAPHY ARE FURNISHED. --IN GERMAN. (KMD)