Preventing Teen Crime
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Why are teens victims of crime more frequently than any other age group?

Have a lifestyle that puts them in locations where there is more crime and at times when there is more crime;

Are more trusting and naive and more easily led into vulnerable situations;

Are not even aware sometimes that a crime has been committed against them;

Don't know about or can't find positive activities and thus hang around dangerous situations;

Are close to other teens, and the teen population has a higher percentage of offenders than other age groups;

Are subject to negative peer pressure;

Have more difficulty in resolving conflicts without violence;

Are not well-integrated into or protected by the community;

May have been abused and conditioned to use violence;

Suffer from lack of good role models;

Do not report crime as frequently and, as a result, victimization continues;

Feel loyalty to family even in illegal situations;

Have families that don't care;

Feel they may not be believed;

Fear retaliation; and

Feel invincible.

What kinds of things can be done to reduce the number of teenagers who are victims of crime?

Make teens aware of the crime risks they face.

Educate teens about avoiding and preventing crime.

Get parents more involved in the activities and safety of teens.

Organize the community to make it safer.

Sponsor more positive activities for teens.

Build teen self-esteem and pride.

Build better relationships between teens and law enforcement.

Build life skills of teens, including decision making and problem solving.

Make laws to make it tough for weapons, especially guns, to be used by or against teens.

Involve teens in improving the community.

Focus more media attention on teen accomplishments.

Provide more resources for the needs of teens.

What might account for teen males being more frequent crime victims?

Teenage male offenders are much more likely to victimize other teen males.

Males teens are much more likely to become involved in risky situations in which the law intervenes.

In most societies, males are more likely than females to be offenders and victims.

What kinds of things can teens do to decrease crime among people who know each other?

learn how to deal with their anger in nonviolent ways;

learn to communicate well, so that misunderstandings will not lead to violence;

install conflict resolution classes and mediation programs in the school and/or community; and

promote a general ethic of not settling disputes by violence or coercion -- through posters, buttons, education campaigns, etc.

Why do you think robbery is the violent crime most likely to be committed by a stranger?

One possible reason that robbery is the most likely to be committed by a stranger has to do with the intent of the crime. Robbery is more often premeditated -- that is, the offender has the intention of committing the crime for some time before he or she commits it and is looking for a good target. In a high percentage of other violent crimes, the crime occurs after two or more persons who know one another become involved in a dispute.

What are some ways to prevent homicide between those who know one another?

Teach people to walk away from a dispute if the parties become too angry.

Teach people to stay away from alcohol and other drugs, because their use is associated with people becoming murderers or victims.

Get people who are either abusers or the victims of violence to get help to stop that violence or to break off the relationship.

Have community resources to treat the mentally ill.

How would you convince other teens to do things to reduce their risk of injury?

Help other teens to picture possible short-term and long-term results of injury.

Carry out awareness campaigns using posters, announcements, articles in the newspaper, etc.

Set up support groups (like Students Against Driving Drunk) that emphasize preventing serious injury.

Are there ways to help rape victims? If so, what are they?

urging the victim to report the crime to police;

just being there to listen and to indicate that you want to help; and

pointing out or finding out about places to go for professional help.

Why do teenagers report crime less often than adults? How could we encourage teens to report crimes more often?

incident not considered important enough;

embarrassment at being a victim of crime;

desire to retaliate and "settle a score" without reporting;

fear of retaliation;

ignorance of the channels for reporting;

the feeling that nothing will happen as a result of the report; and

poor relationship between teens and law enforcement.

What steps should be taken to reduce the risk of crime to teens while away from home?

Walk on well-lighted, safe streets at night.

Do not hitchhike.

Avoid dangerous shortcuts.

Do not carry large sums of money.

Travel with one or more friends.

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