THE IMPACT OF THE FAMILY SETTING ON JUVENILE DELINQUENCY

Abstract

Juvenile delinquency has been defined by many theorists in different ways. In the International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences (1958) juvenile delinquency is defined as the behavior on the part of children which may, under the law, subject those children to the juvenile court. It’s” defined by acts, the detection of which is thought to result in punishment of the person committing them by agents of. The larger society.” (Hirschi, 1969). Delinquency is defined by Gialld- mbarao (1972) as any act, course of conduct or situation which might be brought before a court and adjudicated.' Therefore, a juvenile delinquent is a child between the statutory juvenile age of seven and sixteen (7 and 16) years who commits an act which, when committed by persons beyond this statutory juvenile age would be punishable as a crime, or an act injurious to (other individuals of the public (Muga, 1975). The term_ juvenile delinquency makes us instantly think of the many boys and girls who loiter along the streets of Nairobi, although there are many others who do not manage to re¬^ach these streets and remain in homes and villages, ’and hence beyond our instant observation. Juvenile delinquency is a phenomenon which has been associated with many factors. Some children engage in delinquency as a result of environmental factors while others are forced into it by biological and psychological mechanisms. At the environmental level, juvenile delinquency is associated with -Factors like -Family structure, size and economic status. For example, Gibbens (1961) observed that juvenile delinquents tend to come -From broken families headed by mothers as well as from fairly large families. At the Psychological level, family relationships have been found to be major factors in juvenile delinquency. As the Gluecks (1962) pointed out parental incompatibility, maternal deprivation and lack of affection may lead to the development of juvenile delinquency’, or any form of psychopathic behavior. Researchers argue that a child should experience a warm, intimate and continuous relationship with his mother or permanent mother substitute order to develop into a normal member of society.