juvenile delinquency
Low-mediumFormal, technical, academic, legal
Definition
Meaning
Criminal or antisocial behaviour committed by a person who is under the legal age of adulthood.
A social, psychological, and legal category describing the phenomenon of young people engaging in activities that violate legal or societal norms, often studied as a subject within criminology and sociology. This includes status offenses (acts that are only illegal due to the offender's minor status) as well as more serious crimes.
Linguistics
Semantic Notes
The term combines two concepts: 'juvenile' (a young person) and 'delinquency' (failure in or neglect of duty or obligation; wrongdoing). It is a nominal compound treated as a singular mass noun in standard usage (e.g., 'Juvenile delinquency is a concern'), though it can be pluralized when referring to specific instances or types (e.g., 'the juvenile delinquencies of the post-war era').
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
The term is nearly identical in formal use. The age defining a 'juvenile' can vary by jurisdiction in both regions, but the term itself is standard. 'Youth offending' is a more common alternative in UK official and social policy contexts, reflecting a shift in terminology.
Connotations
In both varieties, the term carries formal, legalistic, or sociological connotations. In US usage, it may more frequently evoke mid-20th century sociological studies and specific legal frameworks. UK usage may be more strongly associated with 'Youth Offending Teams' and contemporary social work discourse.
Frequency
Slightly more frequent in American English due to its historical prominence in US sociology and criminology. In contemporary UK English, 'youth crime' or 'youth offending' are often preferred in media and policy documents.
Vocabulary
Collocations
Grammar
Valency Patterns
[Verb] + juvenile delinquency: study, research, address, combat, reduce, prevent, link to, correlate with[Adjective] + juvenile delinquency: rising, persistent, petty, serious, urban, suburbanjuvenile delinquency + [Prepositional Phrase]: among adolescents, in the area, during the 1950sVocabulary
Synonyms
Strong
Neutral
Weak
Vocabulary
Antonyms
Phrases
Idioms & Phrases
- “[No common idioms specific to this term; it is itself a technical/sociological term.]”
Usage
Context Usage
Business
Rare, except in corporate social responsibility reports discussing community issues.
Academic
Very common in sociology, criminology, law, and social work journals and textbooks.
Everyday
Used in news reports and formal discussions about social problems, but not in casual conversation.
Technical
Core term in legal, criminological, and social policy documents; precise definitions are jurisdiction-dependent.
Examples
By Part of Speech
verb
British English
- The new programme aims to juvenile-delinquency the root causes. (Note: This is not a verb. The term has no standard verb form.)
American English
- Sociologists have long sought to juvenile-delinquency the factors involved. (Note: This is not a verb. The term has no standard verb form.)
adverb
British English
- (No standard adverbial form derived from 'juvenile delinquency')
American English
- (No standard adverbial form derived from 'juvenile delinquency')
adjective
British English
- The council reviewed its juvenile-delinquency strategy. (Note: This attributive use is grammatically possible but very rare and stylistically awkward. 'Juvenile delinquency strategy' is the standard noun phrase.)
American English
- He specialised in juvenile-delinquency research. (Note: This attributive use is grammatically possible but very rare and stylistically awkward. 'Juvenile delinquency research' is the standard noun phrase.)
Examples
By CEFR Level
- The police are worried about juvenile delinquency.
- Juvenile delinquency is bad behaviour by young people.
- The government has started a new programme to reduce juvenile delinquency in our city.
- Studies show that poverty is often linked to higher rates of juvenile delinquency.
- The recent spike in juvenile delinquency has been attributed to a lack of youth centres and after-school activities.
- The judge, specialising in family law, has extensive experience with cases involving juvenile delinquency.
- Contemporary criminological theories posit that juvenile delinquency is not merely individual deviance but a complex interplay of social disorganisation, strain, and differential association.
- The meta-analysis found only a weak correlation between specific media consumption and the prevalence of juvenile delinquency, challenging popular assumptions.
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
Think of a JUVENILE (young person) who is DELINQUENT in their duties to society (delinquency), leading to illegal acts.
Conceptual Metaphor
SOCIAL PROBLEM IS A DISEASE ('combat juvenile delinquency', 'root causes', 'prevention programmes'). DEVIANCE IS A PATH ('path to delinquency', 'stray from the right path').
Watch out
Common Pitfalls
Translation Traps (for Russian speakers)
- Avoid translating 'juvenile' as 'ювенальный' in this context, as that is a false friend related to 'ювенальная юстиция' (juvenile justice). The correct translation is 'преступность несовершеннолетних' or 'детская/подростковая преступность'.
- Do not confuse with 'хулиганство' (hooliganism), which is a specific, often less serious type of public disorder.
Common Mistakes
- Incorrect pluralisation: 'juvenile delinquencies' is possible but rare; the singular mass noun form is standard.
- Misspelling 'delinquency' as 'delinquance'.
- Using it as an adjective (e.g., 'a juvenile delinquency act' is awkward; prefer 'a juvenile delinquent act' or 'an act of juvenile delinquency').
Practice
Quiz
Which of the following is the LEAST likely context for the term 'juvenile delinquency'?
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
'Juvenile delinquency' specifies that the perpetrators are legally defined as minors (juveniles). It encompasses both crimes that would be illegal for adults and 'status offenses' (like truancy or underage drinking) that are only illegal because of the offender's age.
Yes, if they are below the age of legal adulthood (which is 18 in most jurisdictions). The specific age range for 'juvenile' status varies, but it typically includes teenagers. The term refers to the category of crime/behaviour, not a specific charge.
It remains a standard technical term in academic and legal fields. However, in some professional and policy contexts (especially in the UK), terms like 'youth offending' or 'adolescent antisocial behaviour' are now preferred as they may carry less stigmatising connotations.
Research commonly points to a combination of factors including family conflict or instability, peer influence, socioeconomic disadvantage, educational failure, substance abuse, and community-level factors like neighbourhood crime and lack of facilities.