Social Status and Attitudes toward Delinquency Control

Abstract

Known or official delinquents form the basis for the delin quent stereotype and become the focus of attention of both agencies and the public. The boy who has been labeled a delinquent faces other people whose attitudes are crucial in the perpetuation of delinquency as a stable role. This survey sought to determine how Wisconsin adults believe delinquents should be handled. The findings show that they favor swift and impartial justice, but they also conceive of the delinquent as an emotionally disturbed individual who ought to be given the attention of experts. In general, the higher the social status the less likely the respondent was to subscribe to the general view. Those in higher social status groups displayed less con fusion on most issues. We may conclude that the general con fusion regarding the handling of delinquency is a barrier to control. Agencies may mitigate the problem somewhat by clari fying their roles. Delinquency will not be prevented if current attitudes on how to handle the delinquent persist.