SOCIOECONOMIC FACTORS N JUVENILE DELINQUENCY; A CASE STUDY OF SOME REMAND HOMES

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

• Background of the study

Nigeria is the most populous black nation, though recent trend has shown that like every developing nation, she is undergoing series of cultural, social and economic changes. One of the latter is the migration of people from rural areas to the towns in search of employment. This has caused a population boom in the urban centers. The acute shortage of housing has forced the migrants to over crowd in the cheap slum dwellings and similar estates close to Industrial areas. In Lagos these are places like Ajegunle mile 2 bridge, and many others. Owing to poverty, high birth rate, and further over-crowding, the children in these estates loiter in different parts of the town including the City Center. While some frequent the City Center, and go back to the slums, others make the City Center their new home (Wambayi, 1984). This problem of Juvenile delinquency has been addressed by various Scholars, mostly sociologists see( Wambayi, 1984; Wainaina, 1981, Muteti, 1984; Muga, 1974; Onyango, 1989). Some civil servants (Mwendwa, 1986; 55-57) have also tackled the problem. However few anthropologists (if any) have focused their attention to the problem of Juvenile delinquents in Uyo metropolis. Urban anthropological studies have largely focused on the problem of urbanization, that is the process by which rural emigrants settle in and adjust to urban life, rather than with the way of life in Cities, which is commonly referred to as urbanism (Foster, 1974). According to the Urbanization approach, Culture grows where a group of people have a common life, problems and enemies. (Hannerz: 1978). Towards this end, therefore the deviant culture of the juvenile delinquents can be viewed as having evolved to help the latter adapt to the tough life of the streets. For, as (Hannerz 1978) states, their culture is a sort of occupational culture, as it helps them attain their basic needs. Because conformity with basic values and general order is maintained by the power of custom, which is well known to everyone, in order to understand why the juveniles go against these norms, the study looked at their culture, (Clifton, 1968). The family by its internal weakness has also been a contributory factor to juvenile delinquency, here the parents may be dead or they may be poverty stricken, here the juvenile is forced to work, steal or engage in illegal activities in order to help feed the siblings, so whereas a crime is committed, the cause is social disorganization while the aim is survival of the family unit. (Jonnerbaum, 1972). The problem of juvenile delinquency, particularly in urban areas, has grown significantly in recent years (Moffit, 2009). A 2009 global survey of juvenile crime in cities, conducted by UNIHABITAT, collected considerable data on the dynamics of the problem. The survey reported that in Europe, juvenile crime had increased by 2.6% compared to the previous year’s increase of 1.7%. South East Asia, Latin America and North America were reported to have juvenile crime growth rates of 0.7%, 3.9% and 1.8% respectively. The relatively high rate of juvenile crime in Latin America has been attributed to the drug economy in places like Mexico and Colombia (Raul, 2010). In Africa, according to UNIHABITAT, juvenile criminality has continued to increase largely as a result of chronic unemployment among youth. Between 2007 and 2009, juvenile crime increased from 3.2% to 5.7%. Such increases have also been linked to the rate at which cities proliferate or the levels of urbanization and the social changes and complexities that accompany these processes, including urban poverty (UN, 2008). Urbanization-related increases in crime rates are often more common in Africa where average annual growth rates have been estimated at 7.2% between 1980 and 1990 and 9.3% between 1990 and 2000. The ever-growing phenomenon of urban poverty means considerable deprivations for hundreds of thousands on a daily basis. Some of the daily challenges encountered by the urban poor include: limited access to employment opportunities and income, inadequate and insecure housing and services, violent and unhealthy environments, little or no social protection mechanisms, and limited access to adequate health and education opportunities (World Bank, 2009:17). But urban poverty is not just a collection of characteristics; it is also a dynamic condition of vulnerability or susceptibility to risk. In order to provide a richer understanding of urban poverty, it is important to begin with a dynamic framework of poverty (vulnerability and asset ownership), its multiple characteristics and its cumulative impacts (The World Bank, 2009). One such cumulative impact of urban poverty is juvenile involvement in criminality; an involvement known to have profound negative effects on a society’s quality of life via the imposition of additional social costs [Anderson, 2005]. Of particular concern is the possibility that the volume of juvenile delinquents in Nigeria may be related in part to the spatial concentration of low-income families in high-poverty, high-crime urban neighborhoods. It is important to note that there is considerable empirical research (see of instance; Alemika & Chukwuma, 2005; Makinde, 2007; Olutuah & Adesiji, 2009) on juvenile delinquency in Nigeria. Alemika and Chukwuma’s (2005) study of the juvenile justice system in Nigeria, which draws from selected samples of inmates in remand homes and borstal homes as well as the officials in these homes, provides us with an understanding of the traditional philosophy and current state of juvenile justice administration in the country which the researcher declare to be very poor. Olutuah and Adesiji (2009), on the other hand, contend that poor housing tends to generate slums which in turn provide the impetus for deviant behavior largely involving children in urban areas.

• STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Criminal behavior or tendency to commit crime is not only found among the adults, but minor children and adolescents do commit crimes. Juvenile or young delinquents, minor in age are usually referred to as minors concerned to major problems. The juvenile delinquents deviate seriously from the norms of his culture. Children who are guilty of offences such as stealing, burglary, violence, vagrancy, gambling, sexual offences and other anti – social behavior are known as juvenile delinquents. It is in view of this that the researcher intends to investigate the socio economic factors in juvenile delinquency.

• OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY

The main objective of this study is to investigate the socioeconomic factors that led to juvenile delinquency in some remanded homes in Uyo metropolis. But for the successful completion of this study, the researcher intends to achieve the following objectives;

1. To ascertain the socioeconomic factors that causes juvenile delinquency
2. To investigate the role of parent in curbing the menace of juvenile delinquency

• To investigate the impact of the environment on juvenile deviant behavior

1. To proffer solutions to the problems identified.
   • RESEARCH HYPOTHESES

For the successful completion of the study, the following research hypotheses were formulated by the researcher;

H₀: socioeconomic factors does not contribute to juvenile delinquency in Uyo metropolis

H₁: socioeconomic factor does contribute to juvenile delinquency in Uyo metropolis

H₀: parent does not play any significant role in curbing the menace of juvenile delinquency in remand homes in Uyo

H₂: parents does play a significant role in curbing the menace of juvenile delinquency in remand homes in Uyo metropolis.

• SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

It is believed that at the completion of the study, the findings will be of great importance to the parents and guardian of this children from remand homes as the study will help to rehabilitate this children back to the society at large. The study will also be of great importance to the management of remand homes as the findings will help them to understand the psychological challenges of these juvenile. The study will also be of great benefit to researcher who intends to embark on research in similar topic as the study will serve as a reference point to the study. Finally, the study will be of great importance to academia’s, researchers, lecturers, teachers, students, and the general public as the findings will add to the pool of knowledge.

• SCOPE AND LIMITATION OF THE STUDY

The scope of the study covers socioeconomic factors in juvenile delinquency in some remand homes in Uyo metropolis. But in the course of the study the researcher encounters some constrain which limited the scope of the study;

(a)Availability of research material: The research material available to the researcher is insufficient thereby limiting the study.

(b)Time: The time frame allocated to the study does not enhance wider coverage as the researcher has to combine other academic activities and examinations with the study.

(c)Finance: The finance available for the research work does not allow for wider coverage as resources are very limited as the researcher has other academic bills to cover

1.7 DEFINITION OF TERMS

 

Juvenile

A juvenile is an individual organism that has not yet reached its adult form, sexual maturity or size. Juveniles sometimes look very different from the adult form, particularly in color.

Juvenile Delinquency

Juvenile delinquency, also known as “juvenile offending”, is participation in illegal behavior by minors (juveniles, i.e. individuals younger than the statutory age of majority). Most legal systems prescribe specific procedures for dealing with juveniles, such as juvenile detention centers, and courts. A juvenile delinquent in the United States is a person who is typically below 18 (17 in New York, North Carolina, New Hampshire, and Texas) years of age and commits an act that otherwise would have been charged as a crime if they were an adult.

Remand homes

remand home a British institution to which juvenile offenders may be committed by the court for temporary detention : detention home children from 8 to 16 sent to remand homes for periods up to one month compare borstal.

 

1.8 ORGANIZATION OF THE STUDY

This research work is organized in five chapters, for easy understanding, as follows. Chapter one is concern with the introduction, which consist of the (background of the study), statement of the problem, objectives of the study, research questions, research hypotheses, significance of the study, scope of the study etc. Chapter two being the review of the related literature presents the theoretical framework, conceptual framework and other areas concerning the subject matter.     Chapter three is a research methodology covers deals on the research design and methods adopted in the study. Chapter four concentrate on the data collection and analysis and presentation of finding.  Chapter five gives summary, conclusion, and recommendations made of the study.

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