Det brottsförebyggande arbetet har stött på stora utmaningar i att förebygga att barn och unga rekryteras till kriminella gäng. Genom att arbeta förebyggande i tidiga åldrar och stärka barns prosociala utveckling minskar risken att unga individer utvecklar antisocialt beteende. I en mindre kommun i Sverige arbetar personal på mötesplatser, tidigare benämnt ungdomsgård, med att stärka barn och ungas prosociala utveckling. Detta arbete utformas utifrån den sociala utvecklingsmodellen [SDM]. Syftet med studien är att undersöka hur personal på mötesplatser upplever sitt arbete med att stärka barn och ungas prosociala utveckling, och hur detta kan minska nyrekrytering till kriminella gäng. Analysen baseras på fyra intervjuer. Resultaten visar att det går att arbeta med modellen för att stärka barn och ungas prosociala utveckling. Respondenterna lyfter att barn och unga behöver känna att de hör hemma någonstans och ser att mötesplatserna kan utgöra ett positivt sammanhang för dem att utvecklas i. SDM strukturerar arbetet och ger möjligheter till att minska unga individers sårbarhet för gängrekrytering, men det förebyggande arbetet måste börjas tidigt. / It is challenging to prevent youths' from getting recruited to criminal gangs. Strengthening youths' prosocial development will in parallel reduce the risk of developing antisocial behavior. In a small municipality in Sweden, youth centers are working to strengthen youths' prosocial development. Their work is based on The Social Development Model [SDM]. The purpose of the present study was to investigate how staff at these youth centers work to strengthen prosocial development in youth, and how this can reduce recruitment to criminal gangs. Four interviews with staff from the youth centers were carried out. Results showed that by employing the SDM enhances youths’ prosocial development. Youths explicitly have a need to feel that they belong somewhere. Respondents also expressed that their work with SDM at the youth centers creates a positive context where youth can develop. SDM provides structure and reduces vulnerability in youth which in turn hinders gang recruitment. Nonetheless, in order for the prevention to be successful, it has to start early.

Students are referred to alternative schools such as the Disciplinary Alternative Education Program (DAEP) for violations against the student code of conduct. Students who are referred and attend DAEPs are more likely to make failing grades and drop out of school permanently. However, a lack of understanding existed about why some students repeatedly receive referrals to the DAEP.The purpose of this case study was to gain an understanding about why some students are repeatedly being sent to the DAEP in a school district in north central Texas. The conceptual framework was based on Catalano and Hawkins' social development theory which posited that through consistent socialization, children learn prosocial or antisocial behavior patterns from the social units to which they are bonded. In this study, 14 purposefully selected classroom teachers participated in one-on-one conversational interviews to explore teachers' perceptions about why some students are repeatedly sent to the DAEP. Inductive analysis was used for coding and identifying emerging concepts, themes, and events. Six major themes emerged from analysis of the data: school structure, classroom/behavior management, class size, student labeling, extracurricular activities, and teacher-student relationships. The results illustrate the need for changes to disciplinary policies, new transition procedures, and improved staff training. This study may contribute to positive social change by suggesting strategies that schools could use to decrease the number of referrals to the DAEP. In turn, by decreasing the number of referrals school failure and dropout rates would decrease and as a result enable youth to eventually become productive members of society.

Darbe buvo siekiama nustatyti paauglių priklausomybę sukeliančių medžiagų vartojimo sąsajas su šeimos, bendraamžių ir asmeniniais veiksniais. Tyrime dalyvavo 290 dviejų Vilniaus ir keturių Telšių vidurinių bei pagrindinių mokyklų (16 – 18 metų amžiaus) mokinių. Tyrime naudota anketa, kurią sudaro klausimai apie alkoholio ir kitų priklausomybę sukeliančių medžiagų vartojimo dažnumą, alkoholio ir kitų narkotikų vartojimo rizikingumui įvertinti naudojama Knight, Sherritt ir kt. (2002) parengta Crafft skalė. Paauglių priklausomybę sukeliančių medžiagų vartojimo šeimos, bendraamžių ir asmeniniai veiksniai matuojami klausimynu sudarytu, remiantis Hawkins, Catalano (1992) metodikos “Bendruomenės, kurios rūpinasi, jaunimo klausimynas” (angl. Communities That Care Youth Survey) šeimos, bendraamžių ir asmenine skalėmis. Pagal tyrimo rezultatus, paauglių alkoholio nevartojimo arba reto vartojimo galimybę didino mažiau išreikštas aštrių pojūčių siekimas, mažiau išreikštas psichoaktyvias medžiagas vartojančių draugų veiksnys, mažiau išreikštos palankios nuostatos į psichoaktyvių medžiagų vartojimą, iš šeimos veiksnių – mažiau išreikštos tėvų palankios nuostatos į psichoaktyvių medžiagų vartojimą. Kitų nei alkoholis ir tabakas medžiagų nebandymo galimybę didino mažiau išreikštas aštrių pojūčių siekimas, mažiau išreikštas psichoaktyvias medžiagas vartojančių draugų veiksnys, mažiau išreikštos palankios nuostatos į psichoaktyvių medžiagų vartojimą ir labiau išreikštas psichoaktyvių medžiagų... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / The aim of the study was to assess adolescent substance use association with individual, peer, family factor. The subjects of the study were 290 adolescent (age 16-18) from two schools in Vilnius and four schools in Telšiai. Study questionnaire contains questions about alcohol and other substance use frequency. For evaluation of risks of alcohol and other substance use Knight, Sherritt et al. (2002) prepared Crafft scale was used. Adolescent addictive substance use family, peer and individual factors are measured by questionnaire based on Hawkins, Catalan (1992) questionnaire - Communities That Care Youth Survey family, peer and individual scales. According to the results of the research, adolescents no or low alcohol use possibility was increased by lower expression of sensation seeking, by lower expression of friends’ use of drugs factor, by lower expression of favourable attitudes towards drug use, from family factors - lower expression of favourable parental attitudes favourable towards drug use. Possibility of not trying other then alcohol and tobacco substances was increased by lower expression of sensation seeking, by lower expression of friends’ use of drugs factor, by lower expression of favourable attitudes towards drug use and higher expression of perceived risks of drug use, also by female sex. Non risky alcohol and other substance use possibility was increased by lower expression of sensation seeking, by lower expression of friends’ use of drugs factor, by lower... [to full text]

Delinquency has traditionally been viewed as a male phenomenon, often defined in androcentric terms, and neglecting females in studies regarding delinquent behavior. However, females are the fastest growing subpopulation of the correction population, which amplifies the importance of understanding the nature and etiology of their offending. Recent research has suggested that predictors of male juvenile delinquency do not adequately explain delinquency in females, because the androcentric research ignores the damaging impact of sexual childhood abuse and other prominent family factors on female juvenile delinquents. This study aimed to examine the impact of childhood parental sexual abuse on female juvenile delinquency from a social developmental perspective by testing a sub-model of the SDM using a longitudinal database of child abuse and neglect. Results from PLS-SEM indicated that there were multiple relationships between constructs that differed between females and males, further supporting the idea of gender-specific risk factors. The strongest effect of male gender was on the relationships between parental monitoring and parental bonding and family socialization, and sexual abuse and moderate delinquency and family socialization. The strongest effect of female gender was on the relationship between sexual abuse and serious delinquency, and neighborhood safety and antisocial beliefs. Results point towards new ideas regarding differences in male and female delinquency and the impact of sexual abuse and offer support in using the Social Development Model in the study of delinquency.