Good reasons for criminal behavior-an evolution, of motives, justifications and excuses

The examination the socio/environmental factors surrounding some of Canada’s most serious child offender as well as hardcore Juvenile repeat offender cases.

Introduction

The Canadian broadcasting corporation recently published an article in their website titled under the world news section ‘children who kill children: 6 high profile cases’[1]. This report reported the six most publicized cases of this nature in the world. Shockingly, out of the six cases, three of these cases involved Canadian children[2]. In these cases, the offenders either received first or second degree murders. Statistics indicate that in the year 2010/11, between 15,000 and 20,000 were charged in a court of law and convicted for committing one or another form of violent crime.

Thesis statement

The commission of crime by children under the age of eighteen is usually influenced by external factors beyond the control of the child. These factors whether directly or indirectly end up affecting the decisions as well as the choices that the child makes including criminal activities. The social and environmental factors that surround any child ultimately dictate the morals that any given child is likely to pick up. The examination of these socio/environmental factors as well as an evaluation into how this factor can be shifted for bringing up less criminally inclined children would be the ultimate solution. Studies have indicated that there is a direct link between the sociological and physical environmental a child grows in and the likely behavior the child is likely to exhibit. This can in turn become criminal behaviors that are likely to be exhibit in certain children and which lack in others. This essay will examine these social and environmental factors that affect these children in relation to the hardcore juvenile offenders as well as the some of the prominent high profile child offender cases.

Essay outline

The essay will generally examine the social factors then the environmental factors highlighting each factor individually. The essay will then combine the two and examine them in relation to the general upbringing of the Canadian serous juvenile offenders. Finally, the paper will examine some of the high profile child offender cases, and how the social and environmental factors were highlighted in these cases.

Sociological and environmental factors

Social factor are the surround a particular human that influence his behavior. These affect an individual’s lifestyle character and attitude. Thus, the way a child is taught to act will influence their eventual outcome. This refers to a period in a child’s life where they learn are they are taught the rules and values of society. Thus at this stage, they are taught either directly or indirectly what is right or wrong[3].   Socialization thus refers to the developmental period where the ideals of morality and socially acceptable behavior are instilled in a child. If a child is constantly taught how to act through both positive and negative reinforcement, the child will begin to exhibit certain characteristics because they believe them to be inherently correct. The opposite of this would be if a child is not taught how to properly act or inconsistently reinforced, clear-cut moral obligations may not be instilled in them leading to effected social judgment and a disposition towards criminal behavior.

Children tend to assimilate the things around them, thus at this stage family and peers play an important role in influencing the actions of that particular child. If a child is exposed to a negative family or bad peer pressure they are likely to engage in bad behavior[4]. The decisions that parents make mostly influence the child[5]. The child is likely to pick on what they see from their parents. Thus, if say a child is from an abusive family, they are likely to engage in violence. On the flip side, children who do not associate with other children or the general population are likely to engage in criminal behavior than their social counterparts.

Environmental factors on the other are the general factors that sound the child outside home[6]. These include issues such as poor performance in school, bullying, which is a major contributory factor, the environment in which the child lives such as the neighborhood. In such a case, a child living in a gang infested neighborhood is likely to join a gang[7]. Thus is the child lives in an environment that is likely to provide agents that facilitate criminal behavior then that child is likely to be influenced.

Case study

In the famous Reena Virk case all the participants in the violent beating and subsequent murder of the deceased were children[8]. It was observed that during the trial, all the girls who formed part of the group that beat up the deceased did not look remorseful and in fact they could be described as ‘cocky’. The decisions made by this children and the subsequent actions could best be described as a disconnect from responsibility or what could be referred to as a blind moral spot that society had overlooked and that had ended up resulting in the worst form of criminal behavior.

One can therefore conclude that indeed external factors, including those of a sociological and environmental nature play a very important role in establishing bad criminal behavior more so with the juvenile offenders.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

References

Tolan, Patrick H., Kenneth Dodge, and Michael Rutter. "Tracking the Multiple Pathways of Parent and Family Influence on Disruptive Behavior Disorders." Disruptive Behavior Disorders. Springer New York, 2013. 161-191.

Grunwald, H. E., Lockwood, B., Harris, P. W., & Mennis, J. (2010). Influences of neighborhood context, individual history and parenting behavior on recidivism among juvenile offenders. Journal of youth and adolescence, 39(9), 1067-1079.

Farrington, DaviD P., S. I. M. O. N. E. Ullrich, and RANDALL T. Salekin. "Environmental influences on child and adolescent psychopathy." Handbook of child and adolescent psychopathy (2010): 202-230.

Burt, S. Alexandra. "Rethinking environmental contributions to child and adolescent psychopathology: a meta-analysis of shared environmental influences." Psychological Bulletin 135.4 (2009): 608.

Rajiva, Mythili, and Sheila Batacharya, eds. Reena Virk: Critical perspectives on a Canadian murder. Canadian Scholars’ Press, 2010.

   

 

 

 

[1] http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/children-who-kill-children-6-high-profile-cases-1.1322603

[2] - A Toronto 14 year old boy who was charged for the murder of 16 year old Yusuf Tifow who was charged in 2013

- A 13-year-old Alberta girl was found guilty in the 2006 murder of her eight-year-old brother and her parents

   - A group of teenagers who bet a girl to death in 1997

[3] Grunwald, H. E., Lockwood, B., Harris, P. W., & Mennis, J. (2010). Influences of neighborhood context, individual history and parenting behavior on recidivism among juvenile offenders. Journal of youth and adolescence, 39(9), 1067-1079.

 

 

[4] Society generally compares this to criminal behavior.

[5] Tolan, Patrick H., Kenneth Dodge, and Michael Rutter. "Tracking the Multiple Pathways of Parent and Family Influence on Disruptive Behavior Disorders." Disruptive Behavior Disorders. Springer New York, 2013. 161-191.

[6] Farrington, DaviD P., S. I. M. O. N. E. Ullrich, and RANDALL T. Salekin. "Environmental influences on child and adolescent psychopathy." Handbook of child and adolescent psychopathy (2010): 202-230.

[7] Burt, S. Alexandra. "Rethinking environmental contributions to child and adolescent psychopathology: a meta-analysis of shared environmental influences." Psychological Bulletin 135.4 (2009): 608.

 

[8] Rajiva, Mythili, and Sheila Batacharya, eds. Reena Virk: Critical perspectives on a Canadian murder. Canadian Scholars’ Press, 2010.