BEHAVIORAL MANIFESTATION AND PSYCHO-SOCIAL PREDICTORS OF JUVENILE OFFENDERS

Abstract

The occurrence of juvenile offence is an enormous concern in Bangladesh. It has been observed that juvenile offences have increased and studies found that status offenses increased through juveniles. The legal and judiciary reform in Bangladesh regarding juvenile offenders evident to ensure the minimum standard of care staying in Child Development Centers (CDCs). With the exploring of behavioral manifestations of the juvenile offenders, the symptoms of mental health difficulties have been ascertained for healing process with effective treatment and care. However, each community might have unique assessed concerning its predicting factors as these factors differ from individual to individual, family to family and community to community. So the research goal of the study is to explore the behavioral manifestations and to predict psycho-social factors of juvenile offenders. A total 523 of juveniles have been taken as participants where 197 were offenders group selected from CDCs and 326 were randomly selected from mainstream educational institutions as comparison group. About 88.30% of male and 11.70% of female are found among the offenders group where 52.10% of male and 47.90% of female are drawn from comparison group. To accomplish the aim of the study, descriptive and exploratory research design were chosen. The adaptive Bangala version of the four out of five sub-scales of Beck Youth Inventories (BYI-II) i.e. depression, anxiety, anger, and self-concepts were applied. A checklist to identify the behavioral outcome and functional support scale was used and a semi-structured questionnaire was developed to predict the psychosocial factors. Face to face interview method was administered by following the ethical principles. It reveals that social and emotional impairment scores i.e. depression (t = 7.25; P< 0.001), anger (t= 6.96; P< 0.01) and anxiety (t = 4.26; P< 0.001) are found significantly high among the juvenile offenders. The score of the self concepts of the two groups were not found statistically significant. However, it has been indentified that moderate to extremely high level of depression, anger and anxiety and self-concepts have been found among the juvenile offenders those are staying at CDCs. Moreover, as exhibited behaviors by juvenile offenders were internalized related to emotion or feelings where observing to peers, extreme level of explicit behaviors were expressed. To predict the psychosocial factors, level of educational attainment (OR 0.83; p 0.001) school dropout (OR 1.03; p 0.01) and socio-economic status (OR 0.94; p 0.001) are found more as risk of engaging into offensive behaviors by juveniles as socio-economic factors. Middle class juveniles are prevailing to arrest and staying at juvenile justice system which is evident from the recent developed middle class theory of juvenile offences. Furthermore, family violence (OR 2.31; p 0.001), physical abuse by the family members (OR 4.22; p 0.001), parental antisocial behaviors (OR 9.20; p 0.001) and parental mental illness (OR 4.49; p 0.001) are found predictor to juvenile offenders. Experiences of substance abused (OR 11.91; p 0.001) are seen predictors to be juvenile offenders. The role of concerned authority is to provide specialized mental health care of the juvenile offenders by trained and expert professionals as treatment process of development, correction and rehabilitation through ensuring the minimum standard of care. Strengthening attachment bond with educational institutions; prompting middle class family structure; protecting from family violence and preventing the adverse childhood condition within the family level are recommended to prevent the issue of juvenile offenders. There is needed to take necessary steps to depress the juveniles from substance abuse by proper implementation of the existing laws and awareness among parents and education institutions.