Delinquency is an increasingly common occurrence these days. It implies a violation of social norms accepted in society. The increasingly widespread nature of delinquent and deviant behavior compelled us to pay attention to them sociologists, psychologists, doctors, law enforcement officials and even ordinary inhabitants. Many scientists are studying the causes, factors and conditions that determine the manifestation of this negative phenomenon. However, first you need to understand what is normal behavior and what is it caused by?
Definition
Every society has its own traditions and rules of behavior. They can be either formal or unwritten. There are mechanisms to enforce them. You need to understand that this is not only law enforcement agencies, but also a fear of condemnation from relatives. A person can arbitrarily say that he does not accept generally accepted morality, but unconsciously follow it. A completely different situation can be observed in a society that is in a constant process of reform. During this period, old norms are destroyed, and new ones, although they appear, do not manage to take root and acquire coercive mechanisms. Therefore, all sorts of reforms and revolutions imply an increase in the level of delinquency of the population. This explains the situation in modern Russia, as, indeed, destructive tendencies throughout the world. The concept of delinquency implies any violation of social and legal norms. It must be distinguished from deviance. The latter implies a deviation, this is a relative concept. It relates to the rules that have developed in a particular social group. Delinquency is an absolute concept. It relates to the laws of a given country. However, delinquent behavior covers not only those acts for which formal punishment follows.
Study history
Normal human behavior is the basis of the harmonious functioning of any society. Therefore, at all times, authorities, philosophers and scientists sought to find methods and means of stimulating it. Therefore, delinquency is a subject of sociology research. At the origins of its study, the table is still Durkheim. However, a separate area devoted to the study of delinquency was formed thanks to Merton and Cohen. In the USSR, it was studied in the framework of narcology, criminology and suicidology as special disciplines. Delinquency is a subject of study for Russian sociologists only from the 1960s and 70s. A great contribution to the study of this phenomenon was made by Afanasyev, Zdravomyslov, Matochkin, Gilinsky.
Causes of Delinquency
Different areas of sociology explain deviations from normal behavior differently. Merton, following Durkheim, uses the concept of "anomaly." By it he means the state of society, when new values have not yet been established, and old ones have outlived their own. Thus, delinquency of adolescents can also be explained. It is associated with the restructuring of the psyche and changing their place and role in society. The cause of delinquent behavior, according to Merton, is the inconsistency between the goals that society sets for a person and the means that it provides him. Another direction explains the deviations by the norms of another culture. The Russian sociologist believes that deviations arise due to the inequality of people, the inability to satisfy their needs by individual social groups. Another group of reasons is associated with an increase in the number of various pathologies. For example, mental illness, drug addiction and alcoholism.
Kinds
The main type of delinquent behavior is crime. Also, its varieties are prostitution and drug addiction. The origins of sociological research on crime lie in the works of the Russian scientist Herman. A significant contribution to them was made by the Franco-Belgian statistician Quetelet. The latter came to the conclusion that any social system implies the existence of crimes. It is completely impossible to eradicate them, it is only possible to control them. According to experts, the transition to market relations had a great influence on the growth of crime in Russia.
For a long time, drug addiction in the USSR was considered a problem only of the capitalist countries. However, in modern Russia, no one denies its importance. Opinion polls show that the main reason for drug use is a thirst for new sensations. In most cases, we are talking about young people who got hooked on them under the influence of friends and acquaintances. Today, society is much better informed about the consequences of drug use, most of the respondents react to them negatively.
Another type of delinquent behavior is prostitution. It originated with the social division of labor and the development of monogamy. Even in the Middle Ages, the church was forced to put up with this phenomenon. There are three main policies in relation to prostitution: prohibition (prohibitionism), registration and medical supervision (regulation), and preventive work (abolitionism). The first two forms have proven to be ineffective. Historical experience says that only long-lasting socio-spiritual transformations can solve this problem in society.
Deviance and Delinquency
It is necessary to clarify right away that these two concepts are not absolutely equivalent. They relate to each other as a whole and its part. All delinquent behavior is deviant, but not every deviation is a crime. It all depends on the laws that apply in the country. Deviant behavior becomes delinquent only under the influence of the state in the person of its special bodies, which monitor the implementation of formal norms.
Teenage Delinquency
The transition period is always difficult. This explains all the difficulties of this age. At this time, the formation of character. Youth delinquency begins with school absenteeism, petty hooliganism. Its main reason is often the lack of education and problems in the family. Sometimes it can be associated with psychopathologies and character anomalies that prevent one from getting closer to other children, which provokes aggression.