Recividism In Juvenile Offenders
...are referred to as re-offenders. The age and the sex of the offender also contribute to the recidivism rate and the types of consequences. Other contributing factors in recidivism include the relationship the youth has with peers or parents, whether they abuse substances, and the racial origins of the young offender. There is a wide spectrum of consequences and different ways in which treatment attempts to aid re-offenders. Re-offenders commit various crimes and differ greatly in their response to treatment.
Recidivism in youth is characterized by adolescents who repeatedly engage in criminal behavior and consistently make poor decisions. It is caused by a combination of factors that contribute to a variety of consequences. These youth have a tendency to be very impulsive people and lack the ability to restrain themselves regardless of the situation. They are commonly associated with low internal control and tend to be more obedient to external stimuli. As a result, their low self control makes them very vulnerable when confronted with temptations (Haapanen, 2007).
Although youth re-offenders lack self-control they are able to resist agents of social control, therefore contributing to their re-offending. As the agents of social control attempt to stop the youth's negative behaviors the youth is able to resist them because the youth has learned how to be reckless or aggressive at high levels for long periods of time. On the other hand the majority of youth who offend once and get caught don't re-offend again. Persistent offending is usually seen in people around adolescence and there are multiple treatment facilities that strive to curb the youth's behavior. For many just getting caught is enough of a deterrent (Haapanen, 2007).
Approximately 40% of youth that have been caught committing a crime are re-offenders (Kowalski, 1999). The majority of these...
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