Graduation Semester and Year

2019

Language

English

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts in Criminology and Criminal Justice

Department

Criminology and Criminal Justice

First Advisor

Sarah A El Sayed

Abstract

A growing health issue in the United States is violence, specifically violence against children and youths. Research finds that children and youth are steadily exposed to violence during their daily routines. Thus, exposure to community violence and domestic violence has been of primary interest to researchers. In addition, risk factors that incite these types of violence have been largely studied. As a result, to increased scholar attention, the effects of violence on children and youths is of vital importance. Although constant attention is brought to this public health concern, there is less known about the effects of exposure to violence for delinquent children and youths. Attaining this understanding of the outcomes for these particular youths can provide a guide for preventative policies and programs in dealing with serious young criminals. This discussion brings insight to predicting victimization and criminal pathways as adults for youth convicted of a serious offense. The current research examines the prevalence and risk factors of exposure to community violence, domestic violence, and polyvictimization with a group of known serious adolescent criminal offenders. Using data from the Pathways to Desistance Study and applying a series of negative binomial regression analyses to demonstrate the effects of direct, indirect, and combined violence on delinquent youths. The findings indicate a need of greater awareness and support for youths convicted of serious crimes especially those exposed to violence directly and indirectly as it may increase their odds of rearrest in adulthood. Particularly, findings indicate that exposure to violence may impact adolescents’ developmental outcomes which may further impact subsequent criminal behaviors as adults.

Keywords

Exposure to Violence

Disciplines

Criminology and Criminal Justice | Legal Studies | Social and Behavioral Sciences

Comments

Degree granted by The University of Texas at Arlington

Download

Share

COinS