Addressing Violence in Children to Prevent Adult Crime
Introduction
Children as the most vulnerable member of the society have inherent rights that should be upheld at all times. The question is: What should be done when these children commit the most heinous crimes? This paper presents addressing youth violence as a public health concern. The maintains that interventions must come in a holistic manner whereby the prevention shall commenced with determining the origins of violent behavior and distinguishing the barriers to recognize such but more emphasis shall be put on values clarification in a closed-loop intervention process.
I. The root of violence
i. At home
Children who witness domestic violence are said to be the most at risk in committing adult crimes apart from being the victims themselves. A study conducted by the National Institute of Mental Health in Washington in 1993 revealed that 19% of first- and second-graders and 32% of fifth- and sixth-graders had been victimized while 61 and 72% respectively had witnessed violence (Knapp, 1998).
Nonetheless, it was also argued that the prevalence of firearm violence and school violence are the main culprits in honing children violence. Kellermann and Reay contend that household members are 18 times more prone in killing and inquiries because of the firearms kept at home. It was argued that peer-to-peer influence of carrying weapons at schools had also played a significant role on the emergence of youth violent behaviors (Callahan and Rivera, 1992).
ii. In media
As Reynolds (993) puts it, media portrays family and community violence as humdrum if not normative albeit the direct and indirect influence of it in the spread of youth violence. Further, children’s comics are increasingly becoming catalysts of violent behaviors in children. Both medium serve as promoters of high degree violence that are mistakenly absorbed by children as ‘acceptable’.
Poignantly though, media has a lot to do with the prevalence of youth violence leading to committing adult crimes as it can provide no clear rules and role models. Nonetheless, media could as well play a role in countering its own effects of violent images to children.
II. The barriers in addressing children violence
i. The lack of technical competence and resources
Asking about the experience of violence is usually faced with reluctance from the interventionist’s part because of the lack of facilities and resources to respond to the needs of these children as well as the victim exacerbated by the lack of time to do so as what Cohen et al believed (1997). Some also viewed domestic violence as a private issue and might result to being upset and offended once asked. To combat such, practitioners are given special training on violence and inquiring about violence in a competent manner. While also, professional schools are integrating the initiative into their curriculum (Moore et al, 1998).
ii. Cultural stereotypes and negative social attitudes
The result of social and cultural prejudices about children who commit adult crimes is always pointing to sympathetic and caring response instead of empathy (Cohen et al). And even in cultures where partner violence is deemed unacceptable, negative social attitudes are deeply embedded and thus difficult to overcome.
iii. Institutional constraints
Cohen et al also argued that practitioners have less value for their works and are less committed in doing their advocacy leading to the lose of momentum and departure of key leaders. There is the necessity then to narrow bureaucratic gaps and the inadequate coordination between health and criminal justice systems.
iv. Reluctance to disclose domestic violence
Such barrier centers the suppression of children’s need to express their emotions and held captive of own discontentment which eventually may result to finding avenues to express anguish and depression through committing adult crimes (Okojie, 1994).
III. What should be done?
i. Families and communities
The families and the communities have to take more responsibility in teaching children to clearly distinguish right from wrong. Moral standards must be approached more extensively significantly through educating the families, the community, the schools and the mass media in instilling to children social values. There shall be expanded school programs, curfews, regulating mass media to eliminate violence, reform welfare programs with emphasis on competent practitioners and expand community programs.
ii. The country
Young criminals must be approached much tougher. Juvenile crimes worsen due to the fact that young offenders receive little or no punishment for serious and violent crimes. Since the juvenile justice system is originally designed fro rehabilitation of corrupt young minds, the system tended to be very lenient to offenders. No matter who commit the crime, it is but righteous that serious crimes must be met with serious punishments. Addressing such, when children commit serious crimes, they must be treated like adults, more police must be on the streets, punish juveniles for all offenses and have an alternate punishment programs instead of pure rehabilitation programs.
Conclusion
When these children commit adult crimes, the best way to address such is to locate the origin of the violent behavior, determine why they resort in committing such and continuously inflict in them the importance of individually-held values. Interventions must be determined at all levels of society starting from home to the community at large.
Bibliography
Barriers to Addressing Violence. Information and Knowledge for Optimal Health (INFO) Project. Retrieved on 6 May 2008 from http://www.infoforhealth.org/pr/l11/l11chap6_1.shtml.
Callahan, C. M. & Rivera, F. P. (1992). Urban high school youth and handguns. A school based survey. JAMA, 267, 3038-3042.
Cohen, S., De Vos, E. & Newberger, E. (1997). Barriers to physician identification and treatment of family violence: Lessons from five communities. Academic Medicine, 72(1), 19-25.
Kellermann, A. L. & Reay, D. T. (1986). Protection or peril? An analysis of firearm-related deaths in the home. North England Medical Journal, 314, 1557-1560.
Knapp, J. F. (1998). The impact of children witnessing violence. Pediatric Clinic, 45, 355-364.
Moore, M. L., Zaccaro, D. & Parsons, L. H. (1998). Attitudes and practices of registered nurses toward women who have experienced abuse/domestic violence. Journal of Obstetric, Gynecologic, and Neonatal Nursing, 27(2), 175-182.
Okojie, C. E. (1994). Gender inequalities of health in the third world. Social Science and Medicine, 39(9), 1237-1247.
Primer: Juvenile Crime. (1996) New York Times. Retrieved on 6 May 2008 from http://www.nytimes.com/specials/issues/ihome/crime.html.
Reynolds, S. (1993). TV violence: an American public health epidemic. California Physician, 10(10), 41-55.
Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com
0 comments:
Post a Comment