CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Background to the study

Juvenile delinquency refers to delinquent and criminal behaviour (popularly

known as teenage crimes) among young people as they negotiate the transition
from childhood to adulthood in an increasingly complex and confusing world. The
term “delinquency” is a form of anti-social behaviour whereby although it does
not necessarily refer to illegal behaviour, most of the time delinquent behaviour
does not conform to social norms and values.

Although the issue of juvenile delinquency is an age long problem, in recent

times, it seems that the juvenile delinquency of the past cannot be compared with
that of the present era. The antisocial behaviours often associated with the juvenile
delinquents include vandalism, drug abuse, weapon carrying, alcohol abuse, rape,
examination malpractices, school violence, bullying, cultism, truancy, school drop-
outs, to mention but a few.

Obviously, unless something is done to roll back the wave of juvenile

delinquency, the prospect of a better, safer and more prosperous society emerging
in Nigeria will remain elusive. Before a youth in Nigeria is classified a delinquent,
he must have been arraigned before a juvenile court and proved to be guilty of
some offences.

Juvenile delinquency is an enormous problem in the society and is caused by

a number of factors that includes peer influence, influence by the family of the
juvenile, race and other related factors like low self-esteem and trauma.

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Children’s delinquent behaviour has been constantly heard in the news and hardly
a week passes without a report in any of the National dailies of serious anti-social
acts which have been committed by school children. Consequently, there is often
an official pronouncement, which expresses anxiety about growing incidence of
juvenile crimes.

A close observation of what is happening in our institutions of learning

today will definitely show that delinquency, especially juvenile is a very serious
obstacle to the academic progress. Also, young people who are at the risk of
becoming delinquent often live in different circumstances. For instance, children
who, for various reasons including parental alcoholism, poverty, breakdown of the
family, over-crowding, abusive conditions in the home, the death of parents,
orphans without the means of subsistence housing and other basic necessities are at
great risk of falling into juvenile delinquency. The number of children in especially
difficult circumstances is estimated to have increased drastically.

The risk factors for delinquency and criminal behaviour are complex and
inter connected and can include lack of attachment to school, chronic school
failure, criminal behaviour in the family, family history of mental illness, drug use,
experiencing violence or trauma or other issues.

Statistics have shown over and again that juvenile delinquency is a serious
problem to society due to the high number of arrest and crimes being committed.
Not only does delinquency affect the youth population but also the whole family
and entire neighborhood, they also risk their future of obtaining a higher education
when involved in crimes.

There are several factors that have led to increased juvenile delinquency
among the youth in Nigeria such as Poverty (a state in which a family lives with no

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possessions at all and cannot afford to put food on the table. It may be a temporary
situation where a family has entered into debt, for example by borrowing money it
cannot afford to repay, or by acquiring goods and defaulting on repayments.), lack
of access to education (children who are denied access to education (for example,
because of the costs involved, geographical factors or insufficient resources) or
whose experience of the neighbourhood school is negative (poor quality teaching,
abusive or absence of teachers) tend to get involved in juvenile delinquency to a
large extent), dysfunctional families (It is thought that the loosening of bonds
among family members may result in more criminal involvement. In most cases,
delinquents have been viewed as individuals who come from less-intact families
often referred to as “broken homes”

However, peer influences appear to have a particularly strong relationship to

delinquency in the context of family conflict. For example, adolescents lack of
respect for their parents influenced their anti-social behaviour only because it led
to increases in anti-social peer affiliations. Peer groups also influence individual
member’s attitudes and behaviours on many cultural and social issues, such as:
drug use, violence, and academic achievement and even the development and
expression of prejudice.

Additionally, research confirms that children raised in supportive,

affectionate and accepting homes are less likely to become deviant. Children
rejected by parents are among the most likely to become delinquent. Studies also
indicate that the child’s disposition plays a role in this causal chain.

Since parents and peer group play an important role in the management of
juvenile delinquency, adequate and deliberate efforts are to be used in the control
of the prevalent issue of juvenile delinquency for effective educational
development in youths.
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Statement of the Problem

Juvenile delinquency has been linked with students who are in secondary
Schools who cause a lot of problems in our society and the issue of juvenile
delinquency cannot be over emphasized. Most of influencing factors for juvenile
delinquency tend to be caused by a mix of both genetic and environmental factors.

One of the leading factors responsible for juvenile delinquency is peer group
influence. Research has shown that young people who associate with peers and
groups with the right attitude always tend to foster good attitudes and shun
delinquent behaviours, while on the other hand, young people who spend more
time associating with peers with negative attitudes always end up fostering volatile
relationships that may give rise to delinquent behaviours.

Another factor that has been proved to contribute to juvenile delinquency is

parenting style. Family influence and parenting style has been suspected to
contribute to delinquent behaviours even more than peer group influences.
Research has it that the way a parent raises a child tends to affect the behaviour of
that child. Also, a parent’s emotional bond has a great impact on the behaviour of
the child. In families, where there is no strong bond between the parent and the
child, there is always a high risk of the child turning to be delinquent because the
juvenile may face problems like rejections, low self-esteem, and trauma which may
lead to serious delinquent behaviour.

Additional factors that may lead a teenager into juvenile delinquency

include: poor or low socio economic status, lack of access to education,
dysfunctional families, poor school readiness/ performance and /or failure and peer
rejection. Delinquent activity especially involvement in youth gangs may also be
caused by a desire for protection against violence or financial hardships.

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In view of the above stated problems, juvenile delinquency therefore calls for
concern as it has devastating effects in the maintenance of peace and orderliness in
our society, hence the researcher believes that these problems caused by Juvenile
delinquency can be properly managed if there is parental guidance and association
with the right peer group.

Research Questions

The following research questions were raised to guide this study:

1. Do parents play a role in the management of Juvenile delinquency for

effective educational development of youths?
2. What are the roles of peer group in the management of juvenile delinquency
for effective educational development of youths?
3. Do parents and peer groups influence the conduct of juveniles?

Purpose of the Study

The purpose of the study is as follows:

 To find out the roles parents play in the management of Juvenile

delinquency to attaining effective educational development in
youths.

 To find out the roles peer group play in the management of

juvenile delinquency to attaining effective educational
development in youths.

 To find out how parents and peer groups influence the conduct of
juveniles.

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Significance of the Study

This study is aimed at finding out ways of managing juvenile delinquency in

youths.

 The information from this study will help parents and teachers understand
the concept of Juvenile delinquency.

 It will provide parents with proper orientation on how to manage juvenile

delinquency.

 It will also provide information on how peer group can contribute to the
management of juvenile delinquency.

 It will bring about a peaceful coexistence in our society.

 Finally, the result of this work will be of great help to future researchers as
this work will be a source of reference, research material or empirical data
for them.

Scope and Delimitation of the Study

This investigation shall be carried out in some selected secondary schools in Ovia
North East |Local Government Area in Edo state where some families and home
conditions and the peer group with whom the delinquents associate shall be
examined.

Operational Definition of Terms

Juvenile: This refers to a person who has attained the age of 14 but is under
17years. That is, a young person who is not yet an adult.

Delinquent: It is a person who deviates from or violated the stipulated law that
guides code of conduct of a particular country or society.

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Juvenile Delinquency: It is defined as any societal norms which results in contact
with law enforcement agents. It is an act committed by a young person which
violated the stipulated law of that country.

Peer Group: These are group of people who are approximately the same age and
status, especially if they have the same interests.

Parent: This refers to one of the two persons from whom one is immediately
biologically descended; a mother or father.

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 CHAPTER TWO

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

This chapter focuses on the review of related literature. And it will be discussed
under the following sub-headings:

 The concept and meaning of juvenile delinquency

 Types of juvenile delinquency
 Theories of juvenile delinquency
 The roles of parents in the management of juvenile delinquency
 The roles of peer groups in the management of juvenile delinquency
 Summary of literature reviewed

The Concept and Meaning of Juvenile Delinquency

Juvenile delinquent behaviour is a global problem in developed and

developing countries, but the origin and factors behind this issue are different
across different societal and cultural contexts. Whenever a young person commits
a criminal offense, he is called a juvenile delinquent because of his age.

Young people are usually considered as the future of their nation, and if
these youths are prone towards antisocial behaviour, then they will become a great
risk for social institutions, especially their respective families. It is no longer news
that there is an increasing rate of juvenile crimes in Nigeria today and many social
institutions such as the government is struggling to curb this problem as it has
constituted a serious barrier to the country’s socio-economic development since
many young ones who represent the nation’s future and human capital are
enmeshed in moral decadence. Juvenile delinquency is therefore viewed as a major
setback to socio-economic progress and a significant threat to national
development and security.
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Meaning of Juvenile Delinquency
According to Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English (2001), the
term “juvenile” is defined with respect to young people who are not yet adults.
While “delinquency” refers to criminal activities of young people. In the same
vein, Merriam Webster’s College Dictionary clearly defined delinquency “as
conduct that is out of accord with accepted behaviour or the law”

In other words, Juvenile delinquency describes a child or young person who

exhibits out-of-control behaviour or behaves in a criminal way. Put simply, a
juvenile delinquent is a young person who indulges in antisocial behaviour, some
of which could be regarded as crime if committed by an adult. Juvenile
delinquency generally refers to the offences committed by people below the ages
of legal responsibility. Some of the offences committed by young people that can
be considered delinquent may include – theft, smuggling, prostitution, drug
trafficking, robbery, raping, violence and a host of others Ugwuoke (2010).

In the Nigerian context, juvenile delinquency may also be referred to as

either violent or non-violent crimes committed by people who are usually under
the age of eighteen. Juvenile delinquency broadly defined, refers to any act in
violation of criminal law, committed by a person defined under law as a juvenile,
which if had been committed by an adult will be treated as crime or criminal
conduct (Alemika, 1978). In addition to conducts which constitute delinquency for
the juveniles and crime for the adults, there are other behaviours that do not
constitute crime for adults but which are defined as delinquency when displayed by
children and young persons. These are referred to as status offences. Such
behaviours are prohibited among juveniles because of the status or stage of the
young person. Status offences under juvenile delinquency laws of different
countries include diverse behaviours like: truancy from school, running away from

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home, drinking alcohol in public, associating with disrepute persons - criminals,
prostitutes, smoking etc.

Types of Juvenile Delinquency

(a) Individual delinquency:

Individual delinquency describes a type of juvenile delinquency in which

only one person is involved in committing the delinquent act. The root cause of
this type of juvenile delinquency is located within the individual delinquent.
According to research, most of the explanations of these delinquent behaviours
come from psychiatrists and they believe that individual delinquency is caused by
psychological problems linked primarily to poor or low parental and family
interaction patterns with the individual child.

(b) Group delinquency:

This is a direct opposite of individual juvenile delinquency. In this type,

delinquencies are committed in a group or a gang. Unlike individual delinquency,
the cause of group delinquency is located not in the personality of the person but in
the culture of the individual’s home and neighbourhood. The main finding in
understanding why young people commit delinquent acts in a group was their
association and interaction with their peers who are already delinquent just as the
age long say “evil associations corrupt good manners”.

(c) Situational Delinquency:

In situational delinquency, the delinquent acts committed by the offenders

are not deeply rooted in the individual; rather their delinquent behaviours are
provoked by some external factors and events which they are unable to handle. In
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situational delinquency, the delinquents involved do not go out necessarily looking
for trouble but because of tempering circumstances, they fail to use good
judgments hence leading to deviant behaviours.

Theories of Juvenile Delinquency

The attempt to explain and describe the causes of delinquency in young
people has led several sociologists and crime specialists to generate theories. The
causal theories of juvenile delinquency are important means of understanding not
only the concept of delinquency but also its causes, control and prevention.
Additionally, theories help to guide the research on delinquency in addition to
helping the control and prevention of the problem. More significantly they help us
to better understand our own and others behaviour.

The Social Learning Theory

The Social Learning Theory was postulated by Albert Bandura - a Stanford
University Psychology Professor. Albert believed that human learning is a
continuous blend of cognitive, behavioural, and environmental factors. Social
learning theory focuses majorly on the impact of what he called “behavioural
modeling” in which a child literally observes and then imitates the behaviour of
adult or other children around him or her.
In his research on social learning theory, Bandura studied how violence
portrayed in mass media especially on television; movies, games etc. can have a
tremendously negative impact on the behaviour of certain types of young people
watching violent television shows. What he noted was that some children will
observe and then imitate the behaviour of the characters on the television screen.
From this observation, we can see that or conclude that juvenile delinquency can
be the result of imitation of aggressive actions.

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Social learning theory also posits that juveniles or children learn to engage in
delinquency through association with or exposure to others. This implies that
individuals learn delinquency from others. The theory explains that it is very
possible for a child to pick up and inculcate behaviours that they never once had
just by simply observing and imitating others and imagining the consequences of
their own behaviour.

The Control Theory

In 1961, Walter Reckless came up with the Social Control Theory which
tries to identify factors that prevent individuals from committing deviant acts
despite having opportunities to do so. In his theory, Walter emphasized how a
person’s strong social ties to institutions, such as one’s family (e,g., parents,
spouses, and children), peer group, school, church, community, and workplace,
among others, are expected to reduce the likelihood of delinquent behaviours.
Additionally, Walter in his theory also highlighted how the inner values, belief
systems, and levels of self-control that an individual hold on to helps to guide them
when deciding on a behaviour.

Another popular contributor of the Social Control Theory is Travis Hirsch’s

bond theory which he proposed in 1990 as a modern version of Walter Reckless
Social Control Theory. Hirsch believed that an individual’s bond to his or her
community develops in early childhood and comprises four elements: attachment,
belief, commitment and involvement. Juveniles, he said, were more likely to
become delinquent if social bonds are weak – a conclusion which was based on a
research carried out on over 4,000 high school boys. Hirschi found that delinquent
behaviours among those boys was significantly related to the following personal
characteristics: weak attachment to parents and education (attachment), low respect

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for the police (belief), lack of aspiration towards measures of legitimate success
(commitment), and activities driven by boredom (involvement).

The Social Strain Theory

The Social Strain Theory was coined by a sociologist known as Robert
Merton. His theory predicted deviant behaviours based on the amount of pressure
that individuals feel to obtain goals, successes and standards that society set for
them. According to the social strain theory, success, he believed is measured in
terms of achievements – such as college education, career and financial success,
and positive relationships – and individuals often experience stress (or strain) when
trying to achieve these goals. Strain then begins to set in when individuals feel
unable to reach such goals through legitimate means. They may then experience
what he called “anomie”, which is an inability to handle the resulting strain, and
then react with delinquent behaviours.

Robert Merton believed that there were five ways a person could adapt to
anomie which include: (1) conformity, which is the acceptance of socially
approved goals and legitimate means to obtain them; (2) innovation, or the pursuit
of illegitimate means to achieve acceptable goals such as stealing or selling drugs
to afford the cars or homes desired; (3) ritualism, where individuals are unable to
reach socially approve goals thus embracing the rules to the point where the people
lose sight of their larger goals in order to feel respectable (4) retreatism, or a
lifestyle that rejects both cultural goals and means, letting the person in question
“drop out” – for example, alcoholics and drug addicts. They are considered
according to Merton as true deviants, as they commit acts of deviance to achieve
things that do not always go along with society’s values (5) rebellion, or an attempt
to replace accepted goal and means with new standards that provides more
opportunity for all members of society.

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The Roles of Parents in the Management of Juvenile Delinquency
The way parents train a child plays a remarkable role in the management of
juvenile delinquency. A child is formed over time as they interact with their
immediate environment which constitute majorly of the father, mother and family
members. However, it is very important to note that parental influences on a child
begins to drop as the child matures and grows older when the child begins to get
exposed to other agents of socialization beyond the watch of their immediate
environment. This realization is further buttressed by Thompson & Lagattuta,
(2006).
As children mature into young adults, they are in the process of picking up
new ideologies and are exposed to all kinds of information beyond their control
hence a great challenge arises for parents to regulate the influences of the ‘outside”
world on their children.
Additionally, studies have also found that parents can also become negative
influences on their own children and this is seen in the cases where there is the lack
of parental supervision during childhood, which is considered as one of the major
causes of antisocial behaviour.
This lack of parental supervision and care that becomes missing in the early
stages of a child development leads children and teenagers to express their
emotional and psychological deficiencies in several ways that become antisocial to
other teenagers like them. While some teenagers have some control over their
emotional needs and deficiencies, others lose total grip and express their irrational
and sometimes explosive ways that leads to inflicting physical injuries on others,
stealing, fighting, bullying and more. Parental behaviour refers to parental
negligence, parental monitoring, and parental nurturance, all of which are utilized
to manage a child’s socialization and moral education (Baumrind, 1996). Positive
parental behaviour can guard against antisocial behaviour.
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 Moreover, positive parental monitoring also prevents and reduce the chances
of externalizing delinquent behaviour. Additionally, it is a known fact that the
family is the foundation of human society and the most important agent of
socialization. It is in the family that children are first taught to eschew
unacceptable behaviour, to delay gratification and to respect the rights of others.

Conversely, families can teach children aggressive, anti-social, and violent

behaviours. Also, children who are rejected by their parents, who grow up in
homes with considerable conflicts, or who are inadequately supervised are at the
greatest risk of becoming delinquents. Adolescence is the most vulnerable time
period of children and when they are most exposed by a widening alternatives to
and opportunities to life beyond the school or family, but it starts with the family.

Onyewadume (2004) and Otuadah (2006) clearly observed that when parents
make the habit of spending little or no time at home to assist in the upbringing of
the children, it affects the children in a most negative way. They claim that a lower
level of parental involvement and monitoring is one of the major factors that leads
to problems with a child’s behaviour. Lack of parental monitoring not only
develops juvenile antisocial behaviours but also contributes to the link with deviant
peer association. The children invariably fall into evil association.

In relation to parental negligence, it was also observed that parents no longer

chastise their children; they allow their children to do whatever they please and are
sometimes angry with anybody who punishes them in the bid to correct them. This
has been experienced many times in private schools which are supposed to help in
the formation of a child’s values and ultimately their behaviours. The problems and
dangers of parental negligence is that it gives the child courage to do whatever he
likes.

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 Another significant factor that must be considered in the management of
juvenile delinquency is the financial status of the parents. It has been clearly
observed that majorly poor families find it difficult training their children and
children from poor families turn out to become delinquent as this could result to
child being exposed to the adult world. A poor family that lives in only a room
could be doing harm to the child as privacy would be abused. Some research
reports have shown that a large percentage of all juvenile delinquents come from
homes that lacked normal parental love and care. Attention, love and warmth go a
long way in assisting the child’s emotional development and adjustment
(Odebunmi 2007). Children at adolescence stage require parental love, care,
warmth and serious attention to adjust adequately in the environment in which
he/she finds him/herself.
Generally, parents have major roles to play in the adjustment and shaping
process of adolescent youths and it is no longer news that the behavioural problems
of most deviants are rooted in their homes. Otuadah (2006) noted that when the
relationship between the parents and the adolescent is warm, it creates a healthy
environment for the development of the adolescent. Adolescents exhibiting traits of
friendliness, cheerfulness, positive emotions and good maturity traits, show
evidently, that such adolescents come from homes where they are accepted and
loved.
Okpako (2004) noted that a child well brought up will remain a source of joy
and happiness for such family. The neglected adolescent gradually becomes a drug
addict, hardened criminal, aggressive, restive, armed robber, cultist, ritualist, rapist
etc. The required parental monitoring and control for adolescents‟ development
may be hindered due to parents‟ serious involvement in economic activities to
meet up with family financial commitments thereby neglecting the emotional and
psychological needs of the child.
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 Parenting styles is again another factor that determines the management of
juvenile delinquency in young people. Loromeke (1997) is of the view that parents
bring up their children according to the training they also received from their own
parents. For instance,a majority of parents who grew up in the strict environment
end up creating such for their own children. African tradition strongly believes that
the only way to shape a child’s character is the use of high control, authority and
that punishment plays a role in bringing out the best out of a child.
Although the use of force, high control and punishment has its own positive
role it plays in shaping the values and culture of a child but the challenge is that
most African parents find it really difficult to find a point of balance as to when to
use high control parenting style and when to apply love and care. The abuse or
overuse of this harsh parenting technique often causes more harm than good to a
child and consequently forges the heart to become hardened and sometime
insensitive to love and care. It has been showed over and again to be a very
negative atmosphere to raise a child that will become an asset to the society.
Parenting styles are categorized under three major forms: the authoritarian, the
authoritative or democratic, and the permissive or laissez-faire or self-indulgence
or un-involving (Baumrind, 1991).
The authoritarian parenting style constitutes parents who are often strict,
harsh and not responsive to the child’s needs. They impose their will over the child
and have no atom of sensitivity to how the child feels. They are also often
aggressive in drilling instructions or knowledge to the child. Authoritative parents
are flexible and responsive to the child’s needs but still enforce reasonable
standards of conduct. While permissive or laissez-faire parents are those who
impose few restrictions, rules or limits on their children. Reports had shown that
authoritarian parenting styles has negative connotation in literature because of the
negative behaviour outcomes of adolescents and children.
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 Utti, (2006) reported that permissive or laissez faire parenting without well-
defined or clear-cut goals can also cause grave damage to the formation of a child
and may lead to delinquent or deviant behaviours. Also, in a research conducted on
relationship between parenting styles and students’ academic achievement also
found that laissez-faire parenting had more negative effects on the students’
academic achievement.
Umukoro (1997), in his research found that adolescents who are exposed to
higher level of warmth, induction and monitoring parenting background would less
likely be delinquents. Darlington (2007) reported that parenting style predicts child
well-being in the domains of social competence, academic performance,
psychosocial development and problem behaviour. Children and adolescents
whose parents are authoritative rate themselves and are rated by objective
measures as more socially and instrumentally competent than those whose parents
are non-authoritative. All these will enhance and promote proper growth and
development of adolescents in their environment. It was also observed that harsh
parenting (which involves yelling, threatening, misbehaving, violence, or
aggression, exhibited by parents) is associated with psychological problems like
conduct disorders, low self-esteem, and depression. Using punishments as a
parenting strategy is greatly linked with negative behavioural outcome in children
(Deater, 2003).
Parental nurturance refers to parental support and warmth, these parental
behaviours are more important in the early years of a child’s life. Parental warmth
is associated with parental care, love and attention. It is usually measured through
parents giving respect to a child’s suggestions, how carefully they listen to their
child’s point of view, and how they help and motivate their child (Maccoby, 1983).
Higher levels of parental warmth can to a very large extent help to decrease the
history of antisocial behaviours in teenage children today in our society. If parents
18
begin to learn the impact they can make on their children’s life and social
behaviours, it will foster a saner environment in our society where juvenile
delinquency will become almost nonexistent.
The Roles of Peer Groups in the Management of Juvenile Delinquency
Peer association is defined as a small group of similar-aged, high intimacy,
fairly close friends and in general they consist of two to twelve friends in a group,
whereas, a child joins a peer group because they need security and a feeling of
identity (Singh, 2017).
Children who try to follow their friends are often as unpredictable. They feel
uncomfortable with ties and rigid values that bind them with an old generation,
sometimes they feel that their parents are inhibiting more than supporting. Being
with a friend is a most important aspect of a child’s school life and relational
problems within peer group occur during this particular period (Muñoz, 2008).
Deviant peer association has been linked to delinquent behaviour. It has been
established already in this discourse that families play an imperative role in the
socialization and development of children, but peer groups are important because
children spend most of time with friends rather than parents, consequently, their
behaviour is modified by friends and effectively influences parental decision
making hence children learn to gradually build more networks with people outside
of their family. (Pardini, 2005).
Peer association without parental supervision is closely linked with
antisocial behaviour. Contrarily, intensive interaction with parents reduces the
probabilities of peer delinquency (Bahr, 2005). Also, children who have exposure
to strong parental monitoring and bounding are rarely engaged in peer deviant
behaviour. Negative peer and media influences have also consistently been found
to contribute to delinquency as smoking, gang fights, and truancy are usually

19
committed in groups. Early exposure to pornographic materials such as books and
videos were reported by adolescents involved in sexual delinquencies.
Summary of Literature Reviewed
Although the subject of juvenile delinquency is an age long problem,
however, with the effective engagements of the various agents of socialization of
the young child, the cases of juvenile delinquency in Nigeria can be greatly
reduced if not totally eradicated. The government must make proper provisions for
the correction of behaviours in young children and adults alike by the involvement
of professionals such as counselors who are passionate about changing the lives of
young people that the society have considered delinquent and are written off. The
remand homes must be well equipped to serve these victims of the society and
actively engage them so they do not become nuisance to the society.
Parents who of course are the first agents of influence to their children must
make quality time to understand their children. They must know what parenting
styles work best for their children. The issue of spending quality time with their
children to understand their emotional and psychological needs cannot be over
stressed. Parents need time out with their children. Children need to feel that they
are loved and cared for otherwise this emotional and psychological starvation will
force the child to display attitudes that are against a healthy social life. Churches,
non-governmental organizations and child formative centers must also play active
roles in the fight against juvenile delinquencies. Young people need to know the
grave dangers of keeping negative associations early enough in life so they can
steer clear and not cause damage to their lives and others.
If all of these can be done then the anti-social behaviours often associated
with the juvenile delinquency, such vices as vandalism, drug abuse, weapon
carrying, alcohol abuse, rape, examination malpractices, school violence, bullying,

20
cultism, truancy, school drop-outs, to mention but a few can be effectively
managed if all social institutions play their roles effectively.

21
 CHAPTER THREE

METHODOLOGY

This chapter deals with the methods adopted in this study. It shall be discussed
under the following subheadings:

 Research Design
 Population of the Study
 Sample and Sampling Technique
 Research Instruments
 Validity of the Instrument
 Method of Data Collection
 Method of Data Analysis

Research Design

The research design used for this study is the descriptive survey design, a
method used for the investigation of the opinion of people in public senior
secondary school students.. This is a method of collecting information by
interviewing or administering a questionnaire to a sample of individuals. This type
of research design is also useful when collecting information about people’s,
attitudes, opinions, and habits.

Population of the Study

The population of the study for this research work consists of the fifteen (15)
public senior secondary schools in Ovia North East Local Government Area.

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Sample and Sampling Technique

A sample is referred to as the extracted portion acting as the representative

of the target population on which the researcher will administer instrument.
Sampling techniques is therefore the method of selecting the sample from the
population. The sample size of this study consist of 50 respondents from the
different secondary schools in the population. This was arrived at using simple
random sampling techniques. In this case, the researcher decided to pick randomly
10 students across the five secondary schools to form the sample size.

Research Instrument

A structured questionnaire titled, “The Roles of Parents and Peer Groups in

the Management of Juvenile Delinquency in Ovia North East Local Government
Area” was used to gather information from the secondary school students in Ovia
North East Local Government Area in Edo State.

The questionnaire is made up of two sections namely, Section A and Section

B. Section A comprises questions about the respondents demographic information
such as: gender, age, class and name of school. Section B elicits information from
the respondents to answer the research questions which consist of fifteen (15)
items.

Validity of the Instrument

To ensure the validity of the research instrument, the researcher presented

the instrument to the project supervisor and two other experts in the department of
educational foundations for suggestions and their corrections were incorporated
into.

23
Method of Data Collection

The distribution and collection of copies of the questionnaire was done by

the researcher alone. A total number of fifty (50) questionnaires were administered
to the selected public senior secondary school students from Ovia North East Local
Government Area and returned on the same day of administration.

Method of Data Analysis

The data obtained from the respondents were coded, analyzed and finally
tabulated using the percentage method to provide answers to the research
questions. The information gathered was presented in tables, organized according
to the research questions drawn.

24
 CHAPTER FOUR

PRESENTATION OF RESULTS AND DISCUSSION OF FINDINGS

This chapter presents the results of the data collected from the sample used
for this study as well as discussion of findings. The analysis covers the purpose of
the study and the research questions. Section A of the questionnaires covers the
demographic data of the respondents while Section B comprises questions on “the
Roles of parents and peer groups in the management of juvenile delinquency in
secondary schools in Ovia North East Local Government area” which is the core
and nucleus of this research work. Data was collected from the 50 questionnaires
that were administered to students from five selected senior secondary schools
which include: Nifor Secondary School, Iguadolor Secondary School, Ekosodin
Secondary School, Army Day Secondary School Isihor, Army Day Secondary
School Ekehuan, in Ovia North east Local Government Area, Edo State, Nigeria.
The results obtained from the data collected from the questionnaire are presented
in the table below:

Presentation of Results

Section A: Demographic data for the students

Table 1: Sex Distribution of Respondents

Sex Respondents Percentage

(%)
Male 28 56
Female 22 44
Total 50 100

25
Table 1: shows that 56% of the respondents were male students, while 44% of the
other respondents were female students. This reveals that male respondents were
more than female respondents

Table 2: Age Distribution of Respondents (Students)

Age Respondents Percentage

(%)
13-15 years 30 60
16-18 years 17 34
19-21 years 3 6
Total 50 100

Table 2: shows the age distribution of respondents. The respondents who were
within the ages of 13-15 years were 30 in number, which represent 60 percent. The
respondents who were within 16-18 years were 17 in number, which represent 34
percent. The respondents who were within the ages of 19-21 years were 3 in
number, which represent 6 percent.

Table 3: Class Distribution of Respondents

Class Respondents Percentage (%)

SS-1 29 58
SS-2 21 42
Total 50 100

26
Table 3: shows how each class was represented. The respondents in SS-1 were 29
in number, which were represented by 58 percent. The respondents in SS-2 were
21 in number, which were represented by 42 percent.

Table 4: Schools Distribution of Respondents

Name of schools Respondents Percentage (%)

Nifor Secondary school 10 20
Iguadolor Secondary School 10 20
Army Day Secondary School, 10 20
Isihor
Ekosodin Secondary School 10 20
Army Day Secondary School, 10 20
Ekehuan
Total 50 100

Table 4: shows how each school was equally represented. 10 respondents were
from each school, which were represented by 20 percent for each of the five
schools.

Section B:

Answering of research questions

Research Question 1: Do parents play a role in the management of juvenile

delinquency for effective educational development of youths?

27
Table 1: The roles of parents in the management of juvenile delinquency for
effective educational development of youth

Students
(n=50)
Items
No. of Percentage
Responses (%)
S/ Yes No Yes No
N
1 Do you feel comfortable discussing your 30 20 60 40
personal life, challenges and problems
with your parents?
2 Do your parents monitor and supervise 35 15 70 30
your movements, friends you keep and
general behavior?
3 Do your parents spend time with you in 28 22 56 44
family discussions and outings?
4 My parents listen to my suggestions and 40 10 80 20
make me feel my opinions count
5 My parents always warn me about the 37 13 74 26
dangers of keeping bad friends, premarital
sex, and other social vices
Source: fieldwork, 2021

Table 1: In the data collected, 60% of the students feel comfortable discussing
their personal life, challenges and problems with their parents. Whereas, 40% feel
otherwise. Table 1 reveals that 70% of the students agreed that their parents
monitor and supervise their movements, friends they keep and general behavior.

28
While 30% of the students disagreed. The percentages of students with the opinion
that their parents spend time with them in family discussions and outings is 56%.
While 44% of students have contrary opinion. However, in the data analysis, 80%
of students affirmed that their parents listen to their suggestions and make them
feel that their opinions count, while 20% of students disagreed. 74% of the students
agreed that their parents always warn them about the dangers of keeping bad
friends, premarital sex, and other social vices, while 26% of them disagreed.

Research Question 2: What are the roles of peer group in the management of
juvenile delinquency for effective educational development of youths?

Table 2: The roles of peer group in the management of juvenile delinquency for
effective educational development of youths

Students
(n=50)
Items
No. of Percentage
Responses (%)
S/ Yes No Yes No
N
6 I have friends that put me on the right 15 35 30 70
track when I am tempted to compromise
my personal values
7 The interest and attention to my academic 45 5 90 10
greatly improved because I had serious
friends around me
8 My behaviors positively changed when I 48 2 96 4
started making and keeping good friends
in school
9 I had been reported to my parents at home 31 19 62 38
or authorities in school by my friends
when I misbehave
10 I once felt motivated to take my studies 41 9 82 18
seriously because my friends passed with
flying colors while I performed poorly in
my academics
29
Source: fieldwork, 2021

Table 2: reveals that 30% of the students agreed that they have friends that put
them on the right track when they are tempted to compromise their personal
values. While 70% of the students disagreed. In the data analysed, 90% of the
students accepted that they show interest and pay attention to their academics and
it greatly improved because they had serious friends around them. Whereas, 40%
of the students said otherwise.

The percentages of students with the opinion that their behaviours positively
changed when they started making and keeping good friends in school is 96%.
While 4% of students have contrary opinion. However, in the data analysis, 62% of
students affirmed that they had been reported to their parents at home or authorities
in school by their friends when they misbehave, while 38% of students disagreed.
82% of the students agreed that they once felt motivated to take their studies
seriously because their friends passed with flying colors while they performed
poorly in their academics, while 18% of them disagreed.

Research Question 3: Do parents and peer groups influence the mode of conduct
of juveniles?

Table 3: The influence of parents and peer group on the conduct of juveniles

Students
(n=50)
Items
No. of Percentage
Responses (%)
S/ Yes No Yes No
N
11 My parents treat me harshly, using 26 24 52 48
violence, threats and yelling when they
discipline me
30
12 I feel lonely, rejected and neglected by my 13 37 26 74
parents because my parents are too busy

to give me their attention

13 I had been pressured to steal/give out my 5 45 10 90
body because my parents are not
financially stable to sponsor my education
and welfare
14 I had skipped school many times to hang 21 29 42 58
out with my friends without the
knowledge of my parents or teachers
15 I had been exposed to smoking, drinking, 9 41 18 82
premarital sex, fights, carrying of
weapons, stealing, bullying and
disobedience to parents/authorities
because of the negative influences of
friends
Source: fieldwork, 2021
Table 3: In the data collected, 26% of the students confirmed that they feel lonely,
rejected and neglected by their parents because their parents are too busy to give
them attention. Whereas, 74% of the students said otherwise. 52% of the students
agreed that their parents treat them harshly, using violence, threats and yelling
when they discipline them, while 48% of them disagreed. Table 3 reveals that 42%
of the students agreed that they had skipped school many times to hang out with
their friends without the knowledge of their parents or teachers. While 58% of the
students disagreed. . However, in the data analysis, 18% of students affirmed that
they had been exposed to smoking, drinking, premarital sex, fights, carrying of
weapons, stealing, bullying and disobedience to parents/authorities because of the
negative influences of friends, while 82% of students disagreed.

Discussion of Findings

The result of this study has been quite instructive, informative and revealing.
Based on the analysis of data or information collected from the opinion of the
31
respondents on: the roles of parents and peer groups in the management of juvenile
delinquency in secondary schools in Ovia Northeast Local Government Area of
Edo state.

The analysis of research question one reveals that the way parents train a child
plays a remarkable role in the management of juvenile delinquency. The research
showed that parents have major roles to play in the adjustment and shaping process
of adolescents as it is no longer news that the behavioural problems of most
deviants are rooted in their homes. Otuadah (2006) noted that when the
relationship between the parents and the adolescent is warm, it creates a healthy
environment for the development of the adolescent. Okpako (2004) noted that a
child well brought up will remain a source of joy and happiness for such family.
The neglected adolescent gradually becomes a drug addict, hardened criminal,
aggressive, restive, armed robber, cultist, ritualist, rapist e.t.c

In the second research question, the study shows that peer group play a role in
the management of juvenile delinquency for effective educational development of
secondary school students. Being with a friend is the most important aspect of a
child’s school life and relational problems within peer group occur during this
particular period. Deviant peer association has been linked to delinquent
behaviour. Out of 50 students in this study, 48 of them confirmed that their
behaviors have changed positively when they started making and keeping good
friends in their school. Also, majority took their studies seriously because their
friends passed with flying colors while they performed poorly in their academics.

In the third research question, it shows that combined effects of parents and
peer group influence juveniles’ mode of conduct and has synergistic effect, which
necessitates good mode of conduct in juveniles. the majority (82%) of the
respondents said they had not been exposed to smoking, drinking, premarital sex,
32
fights, carrying of weapons, stealing, bullying and disobedience to
parents/authorities because of the positive influence of friends. That is to say, there
is good conduct in the various students investigated. In their review of many
studies investigating relationships between socialization in families and juvenile
delinquency, Loeber and Stouthamer-Loeber (1986) concluded that parental
neglect had the largest impact. Wisdom (1989) and McCord (1983) both found that
children who had been neglected were as likely as those who had been physically
abused to commit violent crimes later in life. The influence of peers varies
depending on the influence of parents.

33
 CHAPTER FIVE

SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Summary

The purpose of this research was to find out the roles of parents and peer
groups in the management of juvenile delinquency in secondary schools in Ovia
North East Local Government Local Area of Edo state, Nigeria. The researcher
made effort in analyzing the roles of parents in the management of juvenile
delinquency for effective educational development of youth, the roles of peer
group in the management of juvenile delinquency for effective educational
development of youths, the influence of parents and peer group on the conduct of
juveniles, all of which have been discussed in details under the review of literature.

The collection of data was carried out through the administration of

questionnaire to fifty (50) senior secondary school students from Nifor Secondary
School, Iguadolor Secondary School, Ekosodin Secondary School, Army Day
Secondary School Isihor, and Army Day Secondary School Ekehuan. The data
were interpreted and discussed using percentages and frequency table. The
sampling technique used for the research is the simple random method.

Conclusion

Following the analysis of the data collected and findings made, the following
conclusions were drawn

1. Parents play a role in the management of juvenile delinquency for effective

educational development of youths. Positive parental behaviour can guard against
antisocial behavior. Attention, love and warmth of a child’s parents go a long way
in assisting the child’s emotional development and adjustment.

34
2. Peer group has a positive influence in the management of juvenile delinquency
for the effective educational development of youths. Whereas, negative peer and
media influences have also consistently been found to contribute to delinquency as
smoking, gang fights, and truancy are usually committed in groups

3. Both parents and peer groups influence the conduct of juvenile.

Recommendations

Based on the conclusion drawn from the findings, the following recommendations
are drawn from the findings of the study:

1. Parents should monitor and supervise the movement, and kind of friends their
children keep and their general behaviour. Parents should also warn their children
about the dangers of premarital sex and other social vices.

2. Students should join peer association that will motivate them to pay close
attention to their academics and keep good friends that will influence their
behaviour positively.

3. Edo state government, through the support of policy-makers, should release

funds, resources such as psychologists, social workers and guidance counsellors
should be employed and deployed to affected areas or schools where juvenile
delinquency is the order of the day.

4. The current national Code of Conduct for learners should be revised and
embedded in the envisaged policy. Intervention programs such as mediation, use of
guidance counsellors and mentors as well as conflict resolution programmes
should be made mandatory for secondary schools.

35
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39
 APPENDICES

UNIVERSITY OF BENIN

FACULTY OF EDUCATION

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATIONAL FOUNDATIONS

My name is Onyinye Ruth IBEH from the above named institution. I am

currently carrying out a research on the Roles of Parents and Peer Groups in the
Management of Juvenile Delinquency in Secondary Schools in Ovia North East
Local Government Area.

I humbly solicit for your objective responses to the questions in this paper as
this would give soundness and validity to this research work.

This questionnaire is purely for academic research purpose. Please read the
questions carefully and give responses to each of the items as best as you can.
Your responses will be treated with strict confidentiality. Mark ( √ ) in the
appropriate box.

SECTION A: Demographic data

INSTRUCTION: Please indicate your answer by ticking the appropriate box

where necessary.

1. Gender: Male { } Female { }

2. Age: 13-15 { }, 16-18 { }, 19 – 21 { }

3. Name of School: ………………………………………………………………….

4. Class: …………………………………………

40
SECTION B

Key: Yes (Y), No (N)

S/N ITEMS Yes No

RQ1 The Role of Parents in the Management of Juvenile
Delinquency for Effective Educational Development
of Youths
1 Do you feel comfortable discussing your personal life,
challenges and problems with your parents?
2 Do your parents monitor and supervise your
movements, friends you keep and general behaviour?
3 Do your parents spend time with you in family
discussions and outings?
4 My parents listen to my suggestions and make me feel
my opinions count
5 My parents always warn me about the dangers of
keeping bad friends, premarital sex, and other social
vices.
RQ2 The Roles of Peer Group in the Management of
Juvenile Delinquency for Effective Educational
Development of Youths
6 I have friends that put me on the right track when I am
tempted to compromise my personal values.
7 The interest and attention to my academics greatly
improved because I had serious friends around me.
8 My behaviours positively changed when I started
making and keeping good friends in school.
9 I have been reported to my parents at home or
authority in school by my friends when I misbehave.
10 I once felt motivated to take my studies seriously
because my friends passed with flying colours while I
performed poorly in my academics.

41
RQ3 The Influence of Parents and Peer Group on the
Mode of Conduct in Juveniles.
11 My parents treat me harshly, using violence, threats
and yelling when they discipline me.
12 I feel lonely, rejected and neglected by my parents
because my parents are too busy to give me their
attention.
13 I had been pressured to steal/give out my body because
my parents are not financially stable to sponsor my
education and welfare.
14 I had skipped school many times to hang out with my
friends without the knowledge of my parents or
teachers.
15 I had been exposed to smoking, drinking, premarital
sex, fights, carrying of weapons, stealing, bullying and
disobedience to parents/authorities because of the
negative influences of friends.

42