Is your teenager a delinquent teen?

The term delinquent is hurled at many a teenager by teachers, parents, angry neighbors and local shopkeepers, but what does it actually mean? The definition of delinquent varies according to source; it can be an adjective, "showing a tendency to commit crime, particularly minor crime" or, as a noun, "a young offender". In financial terms it means a payment has not been made on an account. The Chambers dictionary definition is, "someone, especially a young person, guilty of a minor criminal offence." If you are an adult you can be delinquent in your duty, i.e. fail in your duty, but it would appear that minor criminal offences are the preserve of the young.

So, if your teenager is acting out, defying you, being disobedient, they are not a delinquent until they break the law. Popular misconceptions about delinquent teenagers are that they are mostly poor, from rough neighborhoods and often of non-white heritage. In fact, a lot of petty crime and minor offences are committed by middle class, suburban, white teenagers.

Crime for teenagers is rarely motivated by the need for money because they are poor. They may need money to pay for drugs, but generally petty crime, such as vandalism, is committed more for the thrill than any other reason. It is shocking and distressing to parents who are essentially law abiding citizens to see the disrespect for property displayed by teenagers on a spree, even more shocking if your teenager is one of those arrested for criminal damage.

Teenagers may believe that insurance covers property damage and theirs is a victimless crime. When they set fire to a derelict property they do it for the thrill and the power of the fire; arson is a common crime amongst delinquent teens. Shoplifting is a crime made extra thrilling by the need to avoid the security guards and sometimes the sheer exhilaration of running from the shop, evading the shopkeeper in pursuit. Getting into a fight is part of the need to prove their dominance in a situation, to show they are tough and capable of handling physical confrontation.

All these crimes may start as a need to assert themselves, a cry for recognition, a rebellion against their circumstances or a way to be part of a gang that gives them security. The trouble is, it rarely stops there unless someone intervenes. If your teenager is truly a delinquent, they need intervention before their crimes escalate, and the punishment is beyond a short stint in lock up. Boot camp, military camp, teen detention centers; whatever you choose, choose quickly before your teenager is no longer part of your family, but locked away in a prison, learning new ways to be a criminal.