Family Structure And Juvenile Delinquency

In early childhood development it is important to for children to learn positive values, which ultimately will affect their personality and behavior during their entire life course development (Elrod & Ryder, 2014). Furthermore, microsociological criminologists examine how various social institutions such as family can encourage or inhibit criminal behavior through imitation and modeling (Bohm & Vogel, 2011). Therefore, delinquency is considered an early form of deviance, and this behavior is often replicated throughout family lineage (Elrod & Ryder, 2014). Consequently, a review of thirty-nine studies, indicated genetic predispositions are deleterious in adverse environments which include socially disorganize areas, poor familial structure, lower social classes, and adult violence (Bohm & Vogel,

Additionally, some statistical research has established a definitive relationship between family structure to include, single-parent homes or nontraditional families, and juvenile delinquency (Elrod & Ryder, 2014). Subsequent analysis of family structure and delinquency, researchers have suggested the significance between the seriousness of juvenile delinquency and family structure may not be as prevalent as studies initially indicated (Elrod & Ryder, 2014). Additionally, studies revealed the most powerful predictor delinquency is the relationship between the child and mother, which can be affected by the size of the family, particularly in a single-parent home (Elrod & Ryder,