Sociology and Criminology-Open Access
Open Access

Personality Factors of Juvenile Delinquency

Xio Chan^{* *}Correspondence: Xio Chan, Department of Sociology, University of Graz, Graz, Austria, Email:

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About the Study

Criminal action committed by a minor or someone under the age of majority is known as juvenile delinquency, sometimes known as juvenile offending. The lowest age at which a child is regarded capable of delinquency or the age of criminal responsibility varies significantly throughout the states, just as there are variations in the maximum age at which a juvenile delinquent may be deemed. Some states with a minimum age requirement recently changed their laws to raise it, but the majority of them still have no clear definition of what age a kid must be to be considered a juvenile offender.

Personality factors

Illegal behavior by children in their adolescent or preadolescent years is known as juvenile delinquency. There are four key risk variables that affect it: personality, background, mental condition, and drug use.

Gender: Another risk factor that may have an impact on delinquent behavior is gender. The predictors of various forms of delinquency differ between males and girls for a variety of reasons, but socialization is a common underlying cause of these differences. When analyzing different offending kinds across gender, different predictors of delinquency are shown, but overall, it is clear that men commit more crimes than women. Females are less likely than males to do delinquent activities across the board. In addition to committing fewer crimes overall, women also commit less serious crimes.

Neurological: Individual psychological or behavioral risk factors, such as low IQ, impulsivity or the inability to defer gratification, violence, a lack of empathy, and restlessness, may increase the likelihood of offending. Children and adolescents may also display aggressive or problematic behavior, linguistic delays or impairments, poor emotional regulation, and cruelty to animals as additional risk factors. Children that are less intelligent are more prone to struggle academically. Low educational attainment, a low attachment to school, and low educational goals are all risk factors for offending in and of themselves, therefore this may enhance the likelihood of offending. Children who struggle in school are also more inclined to skip class, and truancy is a status offence that is associated with further offences. Some believe that impulsivity is the primary personality trait of a child that best predicts criminal behavior.

Psychological: Different problems are frequently identified in juvenile offenders. A behavior issue affects six to sixteen percent of male youths and two to nine percent of female teens. Oppositional-defiant disorder, which is not always hostile and antisocial personality disorder, which is frequently seen in psychopaths, is just a few examples. A behavior issue might emerge throughout adolescence after developing during childhood. Because of their chronic disdain for the safety and/or property of others as well as their own, conduct disorders are sometimes diagnosed in juvenile offenders who have repeated run-ins with the law, sometimes known as life-course persistent offenders. The juvenile is more likely to develop antisocial personality disorder and turn into a serious criminal offender after he gets 18, if he continues to display the same behavioral patterns. Presenting a history of conduct disorder before the age of 15 is one of the key elements used to diagnose an adult with antisocial personality disorder. The unpredictable and aggressive behavior of these two personality disorders is similar.