UNRAVELING THE DYNAMICS OF JUVENILE DELINQUENCY: A STUDY OF LIVED EXPERIENCES OF YOUTH

Abstract

Juvenile delinquency, the participation of minors in illegal activities, remains a critical social issue affecting communities worldwide. The purpose of the study was to assess the factors affecting child delinquency for the students enrolled in elementary grades. For this study, qualitative research design with phenomenological inquiry was adopted. In this regard, the purposive sampling technique was used to select 4-participants who were involved in delinquent acts. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with the participants. The duration of one interview was 30-35 minutes. The audio recording of interviews was transcribed. The data were analyzed through coding and thematic analysis. The result of the study found that there were personal, family and social factors that causing or triggering the delinquent youngsters for socially/legally disapproved acts. Dealing with the causes of child delinquency is important for effectively resolving problem. As there were multiple factors involved in the child delinquency, and multi-sectoral intervention may be adopted by involving the delinquent youngster, their family, their peer group, community, school and environment. The findings of suty provide sinfificant information in reaching the conclusion and thus conctributing the existing knowledge on the issues under consideration in particular context.