Abstract
An estimated 2.18 million juveniles were arrested in 2007 for delinquent acts in the United States. Many studies have investigated delinquency in relation to specific groups, such as runaway adolescents. However, little is known concerning factors associated with delinquency among throwaway youth. Throwaway youth are those who have been forced to leave parental homes without alternative care arranged or those who are prevented from returning home. Informed by general strain theory that suggests individuals choose delinquency as a result of various levels of strain, it is hypothesized that individual and relationship strains would increase levels of delinquency among throwaway youth. Youth recruited for participation in the study were admitted to a county detention center due to family court mandate as a result of parents voluntarily relinquishing guardianship rights. One-hundred and seventy adolescents completed questionnaires that included several standardized self-report measures. The results of this study indicate that throwaway youth have higher levels of delinquency than the general population and appear to have both individual and relational strains that impact delinquency. Factors related to individual characteristics and relationships with peers and family may suggest future directions for practice, policy, and research of this particularly vulnerable population of delinquent, throwaway youth.
. Introduction
Juvenile delinquency is a broad term identifying behaviors that range from engaging in status offenses (e.g. running away, curfew violations, school truancy, and drinking alcohol) to criminal and violent acts (e.g. use/distribution of illegal substances, breaking and entering, burglary, and assault). An estimated 2.18 million juveniles were arrested for delinquent acts in the United States during 2007 (Puzzanchera, 2009). Juvenile offenders experience a variety of challenges, such as substance abuse (Tripodi & Springer, 2007), mental health and/or learning disabilities (Mann & Reynolds, 2006), family violence, victimization (Dembo, Schmeidler, & Childs, 2007), and gang involvement (Gatti, Tremblay, Vitaro, & McDuff, 2005). While much is known about factors associated with delinquency, limited research has been conducted concerning delinquency among specific types of high-risk adolescents. One such group includes those identified as “throwaway” youth.
The Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) defines throwaway youth as adolescents who: 1) have been prevented from returning home or have been asked/told to leave home by a parent or other household adult, 2) have no adequate alternative care arranged for them, and 3) stay away from home at least overnight ( NISMART-2, 2002). Many throwaway youth reside in single-parent homes where high levels of conflict, abuse, and neglect are present ( Finkelhor, Hotaling, & Sedlak, 1990). These youth are often forced out of their homes after a physically violent episode ( Cheng and Myers, 2005, Finley, 2007 and Metchell, 2003). Although one in five youth labeled as runaways are in fact throwaway adolescents ( Finkelhor et al., 1990 and Second National Incidence Studies of Missing et al., 2002), limited research offers insight in examining delinquent behaviors among this unique group of youth. Individual characteristics and relationship issues with peers and family may suggest future directions for practice and research of this particularly vulnerable population. Therefore, the purpose of this exploratory study is to identify specific individual and relationship factors associated with delinquency among a group of throwaway youth.
Conclusion
As research on risk factors associated with delinquency has advanced, more specific questions have been proposed with the intent of informing more specific, individualized treatment planning and prevention efforts. In recent years, policymakers and researchers have devoted extraordinary efforts into understanding cost-effective practices that aim to meet the unique and individual needs of the incredibly diverse population of juvenile offenders (Greenwood & Edwards, 2011). Given the wide diversity among delinquent youth and limited information concerning how best to assist them, researchers, policy makers, practitioners, and general strain theorists are left to generalize empirical findings from general perspectives of delinquency. To address this concern, this study sought to understand specific strains associated with delinquency among a unique group of adolescents, throwaway youth. Results from this study indicate that although much of what is known about individual and relational strains associated with delinquent and runaway youth are similar among delinquent throwaway adolescents, some significant factors differentiate delinquent throwaway youth from other delinquent adolescents.
These differences highlight the importance of the need for further investigation of special populations of youth engaging in delinquent behaviors and offer important theoretical and empirical implications. While general strain theory is well-developed and thorough, it neglects to address the relationship between specific strains and youth who engage in delinquent behavior. Researchers and general strain theorists should continue to investigate more specific pathways and questions associated with delinquent behavior.
