Juvenile Delinquency in Canada in Post WWII Period

This research examines the phenomenon of juvenile delinquency in Canada in the postwar period (1946-1993). The examination focuses on trends, causes, and solutions.

Trends in Juvenile Delinquency in Canada

Criminal behavior by young people in Canada represents a growing social problem in the country (Aarsteinsen, 1990, pp. 72- 76). This behavior ranges from vandalism to property crimes and to crimes of violence including murder (Pearson, 1993, pp. 72-76; Schroeder, 1990, pp. 25-34; Silverman, 1990, pp. 651-656). From 1986 to 1991, violent offenses committed by persons aged 12 through 17 years old in Canada increased by 102 percent (Pearson, 1993, pp. 72-76; Crime and delinquency, 1992, pp. 12/10-12/15).

The spectre of Grade 6 students fighting in the street with steel bars and knives seems unbelievable to most Canadians (Fulton and Fisher, 1992, pp. 34-35). The phenomenon of teenaged gangs is alien to the thinking of most Canadians. Robbery of elementary school students by their classmates on school grounds is unthinkable to most Canadians. Yet, all of these incidents and many much worse have occurred, are occurring, and will likely continue to occur. A criminal behavior peculiar to teenagers is swarming, in which a victim is surrounded by teenagers "and assaulted or robbed in a flurry of violence" (Fulton and Fisher, 1992, pp. 34-35).

Another trend in youth crime in Canada is the use o

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m and long- term effects. In the short-term, many of the individuals who participate in street gangs find the gang structure a positive experience. The gang accepts them, where that case may not have prevailed in their own family (Taylor, 1990, pp. 32-39). Further, the gang organization provides a stable structure of a sort, in which events and behaviors are, to some extent predictable, whether or not they are considered by outsiders to be socially acceptable (Bing, 1989, pp. 51-60). Almost all street gang members, however, become sensitized to violent and socially unacceptable behaviors. Such is the sensitization that street gang members are not simply tolerant of violent and socially unacceptable behaviors; rather, they tend to seek out and precipitate situations for the display of such behaviors. It is not unusual for individuals who participate in street gangs to spend time incarcerated in police lockups, county jails, or provincial prisons. For many individuals participating in street gangs, such incarceration becomes something of a status symbol (Barden, 1990, p. 61). For such individuals, the effects of street gang participation lingers into later life, as they continue to live on the fringes of ac
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Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 4275
Approximate Pages = 17 (250 words per page)