NCJ Number
111280
Journal
Today's Delinquent Volume: 5 Dated: (1986) Pages: 7-50
Date Published
1986
Length
44 pages
Annotation
The three types of delinquents have experienced diverse parenting patterns, and preventive efforts can help parents avoid such patterns.
Abstract
There are three types of delinquents: 'preadolescent,' which manifests preadolescent problem behavior and subsequent frequent misbehavior resistant to intervention; 'early adolescent,' which involves the onset of delinquency in early adolescence, which can be frequent and serious, but usually terminates upon reaching adulthood; and the 'middle adolescent,' which involves infrequent, minor delinquency that does not extend into adulthood. The chief familial antecedent of 'middle adolescent' delinquency is less-than-adequate parental vigilance, and the chief familial antecedent of 'early adolescent' delinquency is long-standing and excessive parental permissiveness. The chief familial antecedent of 'preadolescent' delinquency is early disruption in the parent-child relationship. This article suggests some preventive interventions that can increase parental vigilance or reduce the amount of time juveniles are unsupervised, decrease parental permissiveness, and minimize disruption in the parent-child relationship. The article argues that society has neglected to impart to parents and potential parents what is known about effective parenting and the consequences of ineffective parenting. 49 references.