“Critically evaluate whether the cause of delinquent behavior in
teenagers is mainly genetic or environmental. Analyze the effects this behavior has on society.”
Juvenile3 delinquency has life-changing consequences for individuals and societies.
Most agree that a combination of nature and nurture brings about this deviant behavior. This essay will evaluate the role of both factors, and the serious impact such behavior can have. In terms of genetic factors, some research suggests that people can inherit criminality from their parents. Farrington et al. (2013) found that rates of criminality were higher among those with convicted parents than those whose parents had no convictions. Similarly, studying twins, Iacono, (2002) found “remarkable similarities in those raised apart—strongly suggesting that genetics, not upbringing, determines behavior and personality”. That said, the methodology of both these studies has been criticized, and may have distorted the truth about the extent to which personality and behavior are influenced by genetics. To avoid oversimplification, then, it is essential to examine environmental factors that also exert a direct influence on teenagers. The first is the adults around them. Bryant and Zimmerman (2003) found that had some of the boys in their study had positive role models, they would not have exhibited “problem behaviors”. Equally important is peer pressure. Esiri (2016) found the teenagers she studied desired conformity, and had the delinquent teenagers had different friends, they probably would not have turned to crime. It would seem that criminality stems more often from these factors than from genes per se. There can be devastating effects of delinquency. Victims, and those around them, may suffer physical or psychological harm. The delinquent themselves will also be affected. The punishment may be severe – either financially or by separation from society. The offender may experience feelings of guilt or remorse stemming from their actions. There is also the potential for breakdown of family and other relationships prompted by their behavior. Criminality is a serious, but not a simple phenomenon. As Zigler et al. (1992) put it, “the risk factors that make a child prone to delinquency are based in … many systems, including the individual, the family, and community networks”. This implies that everyone in society has a role in preventing it.
3 relating to young people who have committed a crime or who are accused of committing a crime
4 References: Bryant, A.L. and Zimmerman, M.A., 2003. Role models and psychosocial outcomes among African American adolescents. Journal of Adolescent Research, 18(1), pp.36– 67. Available: http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0743558402238276 [Accessed: November 26, 2017] Esiri, M.O., 2016. The Influence of Peer Pressure on Criminal Behaviour. Journal of Humanities and Social Science, 21, pp.08–14. Available: https://pdfs.semanticscholar. org/e6c3/1daaa258e18bddf07f5728a13b8a889e10eb.pdf [Accessed: November 26, 2017] Farrington, D.P., Piquero, A.R. and Jennings, W.G., 2013. Offending from childhood to late middle age: Recent results from the Cambridge Study in Delinquent Development. Springer Science & Business Media, New York Iacono, W.G. and McGue, M., 2002. Minnesota twin family study. Twin Research and Human Genetics, 5(5), pp.482–487. Available: https:// www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/ D30DD0AD62A9D6869428E57A7C7F6025/S136905230000324Xa.pdf/minnesota_ twin_family_study.pdf [Accessed: November 26, 2017] Zigler, E., Taussig, C. and Black, K., 1992. Early childhood intervention: a promising preventative for juvenile delinquency. American psychologist, 47(8), p.997. Available: http://psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?doi=10.1037%2F0003-066X.47.8.997 [Accessed: November 26, 2017]
Comments The writer answers the question clearly, covering the role of nature and nurture, and the effects of criminality. The piece contains sources and includes references in the required Harvard style. The writer uses the unit vocabulary, phrases to express causation, anaphoric, and cataphoric referencing, and inverted conditionals correctly.
