In this revision of a core text for the juvenile delinquency course, Robert Agnew and Timothy Brezina summarize the main theoretical points that students need to understand, and presents them clearly and accessibly. The text is organized around three major questions: 1) What is the nature and extent of delinquency? 2) What are the causes of delinquency? 3) What strategies should we employ to control deniquency? This question-centered approach is the core of the book"-- Provided by publisher.

Machine generated contents note: -- Table of Contents -- Part 1: The nature and extent of delinquency : 1. What is Delinquency and How Does It Differ from Adult Crime? -- 2. How is Delinquency Measured? -- 3. How Much Delinquency is There and is Delinquency Rising? -- 4. Who is Most Likely to Engage in Delinquency? -- Part 2: The causes of delinquency : theories : 5. What is a Theory and How Do We Test Theories? -- 6. Strain Theory: Does Strain or Stress Cause Delinquency? -- 7. Social Learning Theory: Do Individuals Learn to be Delinquent from Others? -- 8. Control Theory: Do Weak Controls Result in Delinquency? -- 9. Labeling Theory: Does the Reaction to Delinquency Lead to Further Delinquency? -- 10. The Life Course: How Do We Explain Different Patterns of Offending over the Course of a Lifetime? -- 11. Is Delinquency More Likely in Certain Types of Situations? -- 12. Group Differences in Delinquency: How Can We Explain Group Differences? -- Part 3: The causes of delinquency: research : 13. Indivudal Traits: What Impact do Individual Traits Have on Delinquency? -- 14. The Family: What Impact Does the Family Have on Delinquency? -- 15. The School: What Impact Does the School Have on Delinquency? -- 16. Delinquent Peers and Gangs: What Impact Do Delinquent Peer Groups and Gangs Have on Delinquency? -- 17. Other Social Influences: What Effects Do Religion, Work, the Mass Media, Drugs, and Guns Have on Delinquency? -- 18. Pulling It All Together: Is It Possible to Construct a General Theory of Delinquency? -- Part 4 : The control and prevention of delinquency : 19. Policies and Programs: How Is It Determined if a Policy or Program Is Effective in Controlling or Preventing Delinquency -- 20. The Police: What Do the Police Do to Control Delinquency? -- 21. Juvenile Court and Corrections: What Do the Juvenile Court and Juvenile Correctional Agencies Do to Control Delinquency? -- 22. The Juvenile Justice System: Does the Juvenile Justice System Discriminate Against Certain Groups in Its Efforts to Control Delinquency? -- 23. The Strategies of Deterrence and Incapacitation: Is It Possible to Control Delinquency by Punishing More Offenders and Punishing Them More Severely? -- 24. The Strategies of Prevention and Rehabilitation: Is It Possible to Prevent Delinquency and to Rehabilitate Delinquents? -- 25. What Should We Do to Reduce Delinquency? -- References -- Photo Credits -- Name Index -- Subject Index.